Negima: Niisan
by maneyan
Summary: Good and evil fade in the face of desperation. For someone whom an honest life only brought misery, what incentives was there to live it? He loved his baby sister, but when does "I'll do anything for her" become "I'll do anything"? HEAVILY M-rated
1. Chapter 1

**Negima: Niisan**

* * *

In the morning mists a young man ran through the empty Mahora streets. His red hair was flapping in the wind and the sweat poured down his face. He was already late and didn't want to give his boss any more reason to fire him. This was a job he couldn't afford to lose. Too much hung on him to allow a job like this to slip out of his hands. He inwardly cursed the fates for dumping that mess into his lap this morning. Some damn drunk had collapsed outside their door again and he had had to clean up his vomit and the other shit the drunk strew around himself before he could leave for work. This had taken too much time and he now was forced to run the last part of the distance to the job.

Turning right at one of the intersections he felt his stomach growl, there hadn't been any food left this morning, the money that they were supposed to buy food for had been spent during the flu last week. Why did medicine have to be so fucking expensive?

The young man's attempts to quickly bake something with the little flour that was left hadn't been enough for all of them. He gritted his teeth as he realized he had to do without food until he got home. Well… It wasn't like he wasn't used to it. "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger." and all that.

He looked at the watch and realized that he still had time. All he had to do was to keep running and trying to ignore the numbness in his legs. Still… the worst time would be before lunch. Then his stomach would go nuts before he found some old piece of bread to sate it with.

To his relief he saw the familiar outline of the world tree café in the distance. He did it again. Rushing into the alley beside it he reached the workers entrance and burst into the dressing room. The boss was already there changing into his working clothes. The grey hair partially covered by the cap danced in the air as the young man ran past him and stopped abruptly in front of his locker.

"Running late again I see…" The old man's voice was one of the most irritating noises the young man knew. Some peoples' voices broke when they sung, some broke when they yelled, but this old goat's voice broke as soon as he spoke. And the condescending tone he used only made it all worse. Sometimes he just wanted to cut out the grey-haired man's vocal cords to get him quiet.

"I'm terribly sorry sir." He said starting to grovel. "I'll get to work at once." He started to change immediately before the boss stopped him.

"You're sweaty…" He said; the sinewy hand felt like a claw on his arm. "The customers don't pay for sweat and stench…"

"I'm sorry sir; I'll go and freshen up immediately." He hated this part, now the old coot would demand that he went into the bathroom and cleaned himself up.

I want you behind the cash-register in ten minutes…" Ten minutes to get clean and dressed with only a sink to aid you and god forbid that you used any paper towels to get dry. He flipped the old man as the latter walked outside into the café before hurrying inside and with the aid of toilet-soap, a cloth towel, the sink and a lot of dexterity he got cleaned up in five minutes. Walking outside the day suddenly got worse when he saw one of his co-workers. A fat moron who was the boss's pet since his father was the café's most avid frequenter. He couldn't stand the sniveling fat-ass so he hurriedly put on his work clothes and rushed out side before the fatso had any chance to speak with him.

* * *

_"Another day with the brats, bitches and bimbos._" The young man thought as he gave the customers a forced smile. He hated every single one of the students that came to the café. Sitting there in their pretty uniforms thinking that they were something; he despised them all. However when it was work-time the mask went on and he spent the entire day smiling at the morons that came to the café. The worst part wouldn't come until in a few hours anyway; at three o' clock. Then school would be over and morons would flood the place. Especially the girls of a certain Junior High class came to mind. Loud, ditzy and constantly giggling, he couldn't stand them. The fact that they loved this café didn't help him the least.

He was brought out of his thoughts when another customer came in. This customer turned out to be one of the few people the young man could stand. He was the teacher of the class he had been thinking of and a man that the young man always had seen as an ok guy; mostly because he didn't stuck his nose in other's business.

"Hey man," the young man said, "What can I get you?"

"Just a coffee, I'm in a hurry." The man said. "So… how's life?"

"Oh you know… up and down." The young man poured up the coffee in a plastic cup. "Could be better, could be worse." He put on a lid and walked up to the register.

"That's nice." The older man took out his wallet and paid for the coffee. "Hey, I was wondering if you'd like to come over for dinner sometime this weekend. It's been a while since last time."

"Sorry, too busy this weekend. There's a lot now." He took the cash and put it in the register. "Perhaps some other time."

"Very well…" The man took his coffee and left trying to hide his disappointment. That was the one thing that irritated the young man. He did get why the man tried to invite him but he wished the man could get that he didn't need his help.

* * *

_"Welcome to hell, enjoy your stay."_The after school hours had come and the café had been flooded by idiots as always. A loud smack resounded trough the café as one girl had slapped her palm into the table trying to get her friends' attention. Of course this was the table the young man was heading towards to deliver their sundae.

"Please don't dent the tables miss." He said politely, "Damages to the furniture will come out of my pay." The girl, a blond, tall girl blushed fiercely at this. He recognized her as the class rep of the idiot-class. The other girls sniggered at the girl's embarrassment and he quickly gave them their sundaes before retreating back to the register.

He hated them. He hated those carefree bitches sitting there acting like idiots. They didn't have to worry about getting food on the table. They didn't have to worry about having to clean up vomit before running to work where a sadistic old goat terrorized you every chance he got. They knew nothing about real life. When they finished their studies they would go on to marry some perfect guy and become a perfect housewife and live on in their perfect little fairytale.

He nearly choked on his own bile as he suddenly noticed that a new customer was coming. This one was another of the girls, one of the worst. A bubbly, pink-haired little bitch who constantly flirted with him. He forced another smile onto his face as she came up and, in her usual fashion, added -kun to the end of his name.

"Good afternoon miss." He said with a fake tone of politeness.

"Aaawww…" her voice grated in his ears. "Please, can't you use my name?" She pouted.

"No can do miss." This was one of the parts he could accept with her; by stubbornly refusing to address her in the familiar manner she wanted he knew that he annoyed her, perhaps even hurt her. It was petty but he just didn't give a damn. "Can I get you anything?"

"Hmmm..." the girl said thoughtfully as she looked at the menu, "How about the melon-ice cream?" Surprise! The little twerp ordered the same crap every time. He scooped up a bowl of the gunk for her and took it to the cashier. "Five-hundred yen." The brat paid up and he made a good show out of becoming occupied with the dishes thereby avoiding her suggestions about what to do after work. Only two hours left in this hell.

* * *

The young man closed the locker and sighed deeply. The old goat had made him work overtime again. One day he would go insane here. He felt like vomiting from hatred every second at this place. The place was like a little fairy-tale with clean uniforms, happy idiotic smiles and pristine streets. As he left the café to walk home he was waylaid by the pink-haired girl and some of her moronic friends as he exited the alley. He groaned inwardly and forced another smile onto his face. The boss had made it very clear the first day that if he behaved in a way that might in any way destroy the café's reputation he would be fired right away. Pinky pushed up one of her friends, a quiet, gray, little mouse of a girl, to him. Apparently the mouse wanted to ask him something but he didn't give a damn.

"Sorry but I'm in a real hurry here. I got to get home within the hour and I'm living pretty far away. Perhaps some other time." Without waiting for their answers he turned around and started to walk towards the train-station.

Well on the train he sunk down into one of the seats sighing heavily. At last he was on his way home. Away from the nauseatingly happy streets of Mahora. Away from the idiotic bitches that crowded the place. Had he not been so tired he would have chuckled upon realizing that he was longing home to the slums where he lived. He was longing to get back to the worst part of Tokyo. He longed for the streets the police had given up on, the streets the Yakuza saw as breeding ground for new members, the streets where life wasn't worth shit.

As he got off the train at the last stop it had already become dark. The broken streetlights didn't do much to give light to the area, they only served to break up the darkness and create single islands of light where the whores stood. trying to peddle their bodies to by passers. The cold was rolling in and the young man realized that winter was drawing near. Even if it rarely snowed here it would still mean cold nights. He idly wondered if the oil pan in his house had broken down yet as he walked up the stairs to his apartment. Fumbling with his keys in the pitch-black stairwell he opened the door and stepped inside.

The apartment still stunk of vomit. No matter how many times he tried to scrub the floors the fetid reek still remained, fortunately it wasn't nearly as bad in the rest of the apartment. He yawned as he entered the living room before he discovered that he wasn't alone. On one of the worn chairs sat a leather-wearing young man, with black hair and a predatory look on his face, who was fiddling with a stiletto. When he saw the newcomer he looked up and spoke.

"You're late…" he said. The young man had recognized his friend instantly. The man that now sat on the chair was the one guy he trusted. A guy he had known forever and considered a brother. They had grown up together and shared everything.

"Yeah the boss was an ass." The young man admitted. "Where's…"

"In th' bedroom. I got 'er here for ya."

"Thanks." The young man started to walk towards the bedroom taking off his jacket as he walked. Opening the door carefully he looked in and saw a little girl lying on one of the beds sleeping soundly. Looking no more than seven years old, her red hair was draped over the pillow and her round face was peaceful. He walked up to her and looked at her sleeping face. She was so beautiful… he reached out a hand towards her and caressed her cheek. One of her eyes popped open when she felt his touch.

"Hi niisan…" She said tiredly.

"Hey princess." The young man said with a gentle voice as he hunched by her side, "Sorry for being so late."

"S'okay… Inu got me hamburger for dinner." Inu was her nickname for the young man that now sat outside the room.

"Again?" The young man asked, "You're going to get fat, you know that?"

"No I won't… I run a lot."

"Perhaps…" The young man caressed her cheek again, "Go back to sleep now princess. Tomorrow is another day."

"Give me a hug first." The little girl said. The young man happily obliged and embraced the little girl. He stroked her hair and put her back in bed.

"Good night princess." The young man got up and walked out of the room.

"G'night niisan." The little girl said before returning to dreamland. He looked at her with happiness in his heart. His little sister… his little angel. The red-headed little girl that he lived for now slept quietly.

When the young man got out of the room he turned to the other.

"I don't want you to feed her burgers all the time;" he said with a serious look on his face, "it's not good for her to live on only that."

"Hey, hey it wasn't my idea." The other man defended himself, "She dragged me to th' hamburger-joint b'fore I got a chance t' find some other place."

"Okay… just think about it in the future."

"Sure, sure…" For a moment the young men were both silent. Then the leather wearing one spoke up. "Want a beer?"

"Why not?" They both moved into the kitchen where the leather wearing young man took up a bag from the floor and took out two bottled from it. Opening them both he gave one to the other. As they both guzzled the contents the boy in leather spoke up again.

"You know…" He said," You ain't havin' t' do this shit man."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean havin' t' go t' th' other end o' Tokyo t' work for some dickwad who treats you like shit."

"What can I do? I need the money."

"Yeah but… shit man, you could work with me. You got what it takes y'know. An' my boss said he'd give you a shot if you wanted to. You'd make fuckin' five times as much as you do now. You'd be able t' get a new apartment an' even pay for her college studies. Hell, you might even be able t' study yourself."

"And if I get caught I'll end up in jail and she in another fucked-up foster family." the young man said, "I can't take that risk."

"Okay, I get what you mean, s'just that… I ain't wantin' t' see you havin' t' deal with this shit."

"Don't worry Kotaro…" The young man smiled. "I'm getting by."

"Barely." Kotaro snorted, "You're too fuckin' proud Negi."

"Guys who work as drug-couriers shouldn't point fingers." Negi pointed out.

"Fuck you…" "Kotaro muttered before swallowing the last of his beer and putting the bottle on the table. "I gotta go. I'll take Asuna t' school tomorrow."

"Only if she wears the helmet while she rides with you."

"Pussy."

"Hey!" Negi snapped, making Kotaro stop, he had been on his way out, and turn to face him. "I'm serious, if she's hurt because of your stupidity I'm going to fucking…"

"Hey, hey, HEY!" Kotaro interrupted, "Chill man, chill! Of course I'm gonna make her wear a helmet. Chill."

"Okay…" Negi took a deep breath and ran a hand through his red hair, "I'm cool; I'm cool." Kotaro looked at him for a while.

"How long have I helped you with Asuna now? It's, what, two years? You really think I would hurt her?"

"You're right… I'm sorry, I… I'm sorry."

"Well." Kotaro said after a while, "See you tomorrow."

"Yeah..." Negi stood silent as his friend left the apartment. He took another sip of his beer and looked out through the window. As he saw one of the whores down on the street leave with a customer the clock showed twelve. Another day had begun. He drained the last of his beer and walked to the bedroom. He had to get up at five if he'd get in time to work. But he didn't complain; his work gave the money that bought Asuna a better future.

For Asuna, he'd gladly slave away at that café his entire life.

* * *

_Four months later _

Negi trudged though the snow, grumbling to himself. Of course the entire bloody city had to be covered in three feet snow just now. It was as if some sadistic god had waited for the moment the heat in their apartment complex finally broke down and then drench them in this white crap.

Some punks had though it would be funny to blow up the oil pan in their house by pouring gas into it and putting it on fire. The fuckers had been standing laughing in one of the corners as the fire-fighters came speeding. The fact that Kotaro had hunted them down and beaten them all within an inch of their lives, landing them all in hospital, did little to help the fact that now Negi froze wherever he was, the only heat that could be found now was in the café.

The streets were nearly deserted. No man in his right mind would go out in minus 20 Celsius to get a hooker and said hookers knew this so they had deserted the streets too, having crawled into whatever holes they used to sleep in, waiting for warmer days. This made a tentative silence blanket the streets.

If is hadn't been for the run-down buildings and the gray, grimy snow the place would almost have looked nice now. Well… that and the dead hobo in the corner. Negi didn't pay the corpse any mind, he had seen too many to give a damn and just stepped over it as he made his way towards his apartment. As he entered the stairwell he sighed upon realizing that the cardboard that covered the broken windows had been torn down and now there was one foot of snow inside the stairwell. What shit would come next, he wondered as he opened the door.

The entire winter had been one hassle after another. First the social services had been mucking around in their life claiming that they were concerned the Asuna's wellbeing. Negi didn't swallow that crap at all; he knew that their only interest was to stop everyone who didn't measure up to their standards from raising kids. They wanted to take away the kids of everyone "less-than-perfect" so they could be put in another, more perfect, family, and be raised to become perfect little members of society, like the idiots who crowded Mahora.

_Flashback:_

_"Those fucking ASSES!" Kotaro snarled, "Who th' fuck do they think they are?"_

_Negi sighed as he hid his face in his hands. "They are the ones in charge," he said quietly, "they do whatever they want."_

_"No… no I ain't lettin' them take her, what's th' cunt's name?" The dark-haired young man made a grab for the paper. "I'll fuckin' mark th' cunt!" However Negi tore away the paper from him. _

_"Don't even think about it you fucking psycho!" He snapped, "Then they'll definitely take her!"_

_"And it ain't obvious that they'll take her already? The fuck you plannin' t' do? Fuck her?"_

_"Shut up you inbred fucking moron and let me think!" Negi roared, finally shutting Kotaro up. "Okay… they will only take her if we aren't perfect enough for their standards, that means a clean apartment, nice language ect, ect. We just have to fix the place up."_

_End flashback:_

They had managed to fix up the apartment so that it looked good and invited the social-worker to dinner during which he acted friendly and understanding towards her and he had also pointed out that even if it was a rough neighborhood that wasn't reason enough to take Asuna away from there if the family was good. Kotaro had, in the meantime, watched the woman's car in case anyone tried anything. Eventually Negi had placated the woman enough that she let Asuna remain with her only remaining family.

They got out of that mess just in time for Asuna to catch pneumonia. The little girl had one day woken up trying to cough her lungs out, scaring the life out of both Negi and Kotaro. She had been forced to spend three weeks in bed as the local back-alley doctor, a drunkard who had been fired for malpractice and now made a living working as an underground doctor here, stuffed her with medicine.

Just as she got better the heat broke down and a snowstorm blew in over Tokyo. Negi and Kotaro had been forced to go to the junk-yard and steal an old iron stove which he now kept going with whatever was available. Cardboard, newspaper, if it could burn it went in there. Asuna had said to him that she could start woodworking in school so that they could use what she made as fuel for the fire but Negi had refused to even consider the idea.

Everything he did, every problem he solved, every day he worked at that café, was all for giving her a childhood that didn't suck. A childhood she could remember with some happiness. And that things she had put her soul into making was NOT going to become fuel, he'd rather burn his own clothes than letting that happen. He gathered up the cardboard and carried it up to the apartment. At least they might have some warmth today…

As he stepped into the apartment he noticed something, it was quiet. Too quiet.

"Asuna?" He shouted. "I'm home."

There was no answer; then he heard a small sound from that bedroom. It was… sobbing? Negi dropped the bags and hurried over to the bedroom. What had happened? As he opened the door he saw Asuna's little red head stick up behind her bed. He slowly walked in and looked down at her. She sat with her head buried in her knees and clutched her jacket to her chest.

"Hey princess…" Negi said softly, "What's the matter?" He didn't show it but his heart was cold. What had happened? Had her classmates found out about where she lived and started to tease her for it? Had some freak tried to grope her?

Asuna looked up at him, her eyes were filled with tears, her cheeks red and wet and she sniffled.

"I… I'm sorry Niisan." She sniffed, "I didn't mean to…"

"Hey, hey…" Negi sat down and embraced her. "What has happened?"

"I… I broke your jacket." She held, with her arms trembling, out her jacket, an old, worn thing Negi had used when he was a kid and that he had given to her. She hadn't been any happy about having an old and worn thing like that but Negi had told her about how much it meant to him and she had eventually accepted it. And now it had finally broken. Negi embraced his little sister and held her close. Comforting her he gritted his teeth. And now they would have to get a new one… at least the universe had been quick about what new shit would come up. However he smiled at her as he looked into her eyes.

"It's okay princess…" He said gently, "You didn't mean it, did you?" Asuna shook her head, "Then it's all right. We'll just go down to town tomorrow and get you a new jacket."

"I'm sorry." She said again, "I know we don't have any money and…" Negi put a hand over her mouth.

"Don't worry princess…" He said, "I still got some money left since last pay and I get my next pay tomorrow, it's all right." He lied, it would be almost two weeks until he got paid and money was already running low. Still… Asuna came first. He would simply have to get by. "Now, do you want some dinner?" He asked and Asuna nodded. Picking her up, he carried her into the kitchen. Asuna started to squirm in his arms.

"Let me go." She complained, "I can walk myself."

"No can do princess." Negi grinned and started to tickle her.

"No!" Asuna started to squirm even more. "Niisan!" She laughed as he tickled her belly.

"Would you look at that?" Negi exclaimed, "We're already there." He put her down and she spun around trying to look angry but the effect was ruined since she had to fight her laughter. Negi grinned at her and ruffled her hair.

"Stupid niisan." Asuna gave him a playful kick.

* * *

_The next day_

Negi had come to the conclusion that he hated the jacket-designers of Japan. They had been walking around the stores for three hours and hadn't found ONE normal jacket. Every single one seemed like the designer ate LSD like others ate normal food. Still… he had told Asuna that she could choose whichever she wanted. As she walked between the racks he looked at her from a distance trying to figure out how the hell he would pay for this. What would a jacket cost? Probably only around 4000 yen, that wasn't much, he could handle it, he simply had to do a few more overtime shifts at the café. If he groveled enough he could probably get the money straight away. If the old goat didn't do that… Well… he had stolen from the register before.

"Niisan!" Asuna yelled as she came running, "Look!" She held out a jacket towards him. It was a dark green coat, with a foddered inside, that had embroidered patterns on the arms. Surprisingly enough it looked really nice.

"Nice!" Negi said to his little sister, "Come on; let's see how it looks on you." They found a mirror and Asuna hurriedly took it on. It suited her perfectly. She looked really like a little princess in it. Asuna spun around with her arms out, obviously smitten with it. Negi really liked it too. Perhaps it would work out after all…

"Shall we go for that one then?" He asked and Asuna nodded. He took it off and brought it to the check-out, Asuna almost skipping behind him. The shop-worker behind the register turned out to be an old woman with a sour look on her face. She took one look on his worn coat and immediately got the most distasteful look imaginable on her face. When he put the jacket on the counter she took it and held it like it was diseased as she dragged the bar-code over the register.

"7000 Yen." She said with a shrill voice and suddenly Negi's world came crashing down.

_"Shit, shit, shit!"_He kept smiling as he brought up his credit card and gave it to the woman. It might work anyway… He was sure he had some more money left from the last pay check. As the held his breath and when the machine gave a peep of protest he flinched…

"Sorry," The old woman said, clearly not meaning it, "But your card isn't acceptable."

"Try it again…" Negi said, trying to desperately come up with something. Wasn't there a pawnshop nearby? "I've had some problems with it lately."

"As I said your card doesn't pass." The woman sneered, "Our equipment isn't faulty."

"No but the card is kinda…. You know."

"No I do not know what you are trying to tell me, if you cannot pay please vacate the store. I do not wish to waste time on people who cannot pay."

"Niisan…" Asuna whispered with a sad voice, "It's all right… I can get another jacket…"

Negi suppressed the voice in him that told him to smash the hag's face in. He turned to Asuna quickly and ruffled her hair, "Don't worry." He assured her with a smile, "It'll work out." He then turned back to the woman "Please!" He begged; how he hated this. "Just give it one more shot, I promise the card will pass. And it isn't like there are any customers behind us in the line." Negi gestured at the empty space behind him.

The woman eventually, after much begging from Negi's side, pulled the card through the register again. Yet again the machine beeped and Negi clenched his fists.

"As before, your card doesn't work." The entire woman looked like one big sneer to him. "I think you should leave this store."

"Okay… its okay…" Negi said, internally raging, it had all gone so well, she had loved that thing! "I'll just return this to the rack then…" Negi made a grab for the coat when suddenly he fell; face first, into the floor. A burly pair of hands pushed him down and Asuna shrieked.

"What the fuck!" Negi yelled as the hands grabbed his and pushed them together. "I didn't do anything!"

"Attempted stealing is something, you little street-rat." A hoarse voice growled, "And don't think you can worm your way out of this one."

"I didn't fucking do anything!" Negi yelled, Those asses; just because he wore worn clothes they though he was a thief! He kicked backwards trying to get out of the grip when suddenly a calm, strong voice rang out.

"Enough!" Negi felt the man above him stop struggling with him and he looked to the side. The first thing he saw was a pair of black shoes; looking further upwards he saw that said shoes belonged to a man in a light blue suit, with red eyes and white hair, both of these things clear signs of him being an albino. The figure didn't stand too tall; however the twin beefy men flanking him more than made up for it and the piercing look in his eyes gave him a powerful presence. Negi couldn't help but curse internally. Of all the possible people it had to be him…

"What is going on here?" The man asked the shop-worker, who had shrunk to half her normal size upon his arrival. His soft tenor rung clearly, but the undertone of steel in it was unmistakable.

"I-I'm terribly sorry sir," The hag whined "This hoodlum attempted to steal one of the articles. We will dispense of him immediately."

"A shoplifter?" The albino looked at Negi with cold eyes. "I see…"

"Yes sir…" The woman continued, "We'll call the police at this instant." She made a grab for the phone but the albino stopped her.

"Wait." Was all he said as he walked up to the counter and took up the jacket. "This was what he tried to steal?"

"I didn't try to steal it, are you deaf…?" Negi didn't have time to say anything more before the guard put a sweaty hand over his mouth.

"A fine coat…" the albino said, "He has good taste. I suppose it was for you?" he turned to look at Asuna, who had hidden behind one of the clothes racks and was now looking out at them. The pale man looked from the coat to the girl several times before he gestured for Asuna to come closer. "Come over here, little one."

Asuna stood still, refusing to approach, until one of the bulky men who had accompanied the albino came up behind her and grabbed her before pulling her up to the man. The albino held out the coat towards the girl.

"Put it on." He said; ignoring Negi's choked mumbling in the background. Asuna stood still but eventually faltered under the man's glare. She reached out and took the jacket, putting it on. The albino looked at her for a few seconds before smiling, a smile that looked out of place in his harsh face. He rose to his feet and walked up to the register, taking out his wallet. Seven one-thousand Yen notes landed on the table.

"There, paid." The albino said. The woman stared at him in shock and for a few seconds the entire store was silent. "Is my money not acceptable?" The albino said, making the woman immediately take the bills and clearing the purchase. "Good." The albino turned to the guard, who was still holding Negi down, and spoke up again. "Let him go, now." The guard immediately got off him and rose to his feet. "Now, next time my associates come here to make purchases I'd appreciate if they weren't harassed," He said to them both. Both the guard and the woman seemed to shrink as the malice in the man's voice filled the room. Before either of them could answer, however, the albino spun around and smiled at Asuna again.

"There…" He said kindly, "It's yours now." Asuna looked at him for a few seconds before she bowed to him.

"Thank you." She said politely but the man waved his hand.

"Do not thank me." He said, "It was my pleasure."

"Yeah sure…" Negi said as he came up beside Asuna, "Thanks but we got to go now. Come on Asuna." He took her hand and was about to drag her away when suddenly one of the bodyguards blocked the path.

"Please…" The albino said, "Let me buy you dinner as compensation for this incident."

"That won't be needed." Negi said and tried to get past the guard, not wanting to be near this guy a second more than he needed to.

"I apologize…" The albino laid a hand on his shoulder and Negi looked back into his ice-cold eyes, "but I must insist." It wasn't a request… it was a threat. Negi realized that he was trapped.

"Fine…" He said with a forced smile.

* * *

The albino held true to his words of dinner and took them to a fancy restaurant near the clothing store. It was the type of restaurant that you needed a reservation to even approach. The albino, however, walked straight in and stopped in front of the waiter at the entrance.

"Table for three." He said calmly and the waiter immediately scurried off to procure one for them. While he did Negi and Asuna was waiting at the entrance. Asuna was staring, wide-eyed, at the interior. This place was so different from their run-down home and the burger joints where she went with inu. The red carpet…the curtains that hung everywhere, the paintings on the walls… it was like a dream.

Negi shared that opinion; however he considered the situation more of a nightmare than a normal dream. The albino was an acquaintance all right. But not one he liked to talk about. His name was Fate Averruncus, a foreigner who had, despite his foreign heritage, managed to be adopted into one of the Yakuza families. He was nowadays one of the Yakuza oyabun's lieutenants. The reason he knew Negi, though, was that Kotaro was his underling. Negi's oldest and only friend had, since he was thirteen, been mixed up in the albino's drug operations. The albino that now stood only a few feet from them was one of Tokyo's greatest drug-lords.

Negi was quite familiar with how the pale-faced man worked; he always made use of whatever resources that already existed. If you wanted to get a spy, bribe one of the people already there, if you wanted to kill someone, support their enemies… if you wanted to sell drugs somewhere, find someone who has a reason to be there in the first place. The last thing was why Negi was here now. Fate had once offered Negi a chance to sell drugs at Mahora, the fact that he worked there would make him less suspicious to the police.

Negi had however vehemently refused the very idea and stormed out of the house when the albino had suggested it. The thing was that he had also thrown about every insult he knew after the man. To his surprise he hadn't ended up in some alley with a broken skull for insulting the albino. The man hadn't done anything at all… until today.

"If you would please come with me here." They suddenly heard the waiter say and Fate looked back at them. Asuna was overjoyed and hurried into the restaurant, Negi following her with notably lesser enthusiasm. As they sat down by the tables a waiter came out with the menu. Fate played the part of a graceful host flawlessly and entertained Asuna with small anecdotes about the food and the guests. Within a minute the little girl was spellbound by him.

However Negi sat quietly and refused to even look at the man. His mind was sorely focused on how to get out of there but no openings could be seen. Even when the food came in he just couldn't enjoy the taste of it.

It was after the dinner that Fate noticed how Asuna looked in the direction of the large aquarium that made up an entire wall. He made a gesture for one of his guards to come up.

"If you'd like to take a closer look Hiroshi here can accompany you." He said kindly to her. Asuna's eyes sparkled for a moment before she looked at Negi.

"Can I go niisan?" She asked him breathlessly. Negi couldn't possibly say no to her and nodded. The little girl squealed with joy and darted away. Fate looked after her for a second before he turned to Negi, his face having reverted to its usual ice-cold expression.

"She is a beautiful child." He said, "One day she will become a beautiful woman."

"Can it Fate." Negi growled, "You really think a fancy dinner's gonna make me your dog?"

"No," Fate replied as he took a sip of his wine. "I'm not naive."

"Good, then perhaps we can stop this shit." Negi got up and was about to leave when Fate spoke up.

"How many times have you stolen from the register now?" Negi froze in his steps and felt cold sweat starting to appear on his forehead. "Please sit down and let us discuss this as civilized beings." Negi was forced back into his seat by Fate's other guard and the albino looked intently at him.

"You are currently working for a man who pays you about a third of what you should make," He said impassively, "he forces you to work overtime for far too small sums and you hardly have time to see young younger sister any more. In order to make things go around you have to steal from the register and hope that your co-worker won't notice it when he handles the tallies. Thus far it has worked thanks to his abysmal grades in maths but tell me this. Do you really think your luck will hold?"

Negi's hands shook as the albino tore up all his dirty secrets and laid them bare for the world to see. However he was still defiant.

"No matter what you're saying, you won't make me your subordinate. I'm not doing that shit."

"What is more dishonorable?" Fate mused as he took another sip, "To do a "dishonest" work "honestly", or to do an "honest" work "dishonestly"? You are just as bound for jail for this you know."

Negi just looked away, refusing to even look at the man.

"Perhaps I'm doing a mistake here." Fate said as he reached for his wallet, "Rhetoric might not be something you put an emphasis on. Solid facts might be better." Fate took out a ten-thousand Yen bill and put it in front of him.

"This is for the jacket." He said, Negi stared at the large bill, more money that he'd ever had at one time, before Fate took up two more, "This is in order to fill the fridge for the rest of the month." Another two bills landed beside the first three and Negi swallowed, could that much money exist? "This is for a full set of new clothes for her." Fate said before yet again a ten-thousand Yen bill came up. "This is for Christmas, so she can have some real Christmas presents." Two more bills landed on the table. "And finally, for all eventualities."

Eighty thousand Yen now lay in front of Negi, who couldn't help but stare at them.

"You'll have to make a choice." Fate said to the young man, who now had lost all signs of defiance, "What is more important to you? From what I've heard it's Asuna. You can't take care of her as it is and you know it. Any day now you'll be fired if you keep this up. Either you try to find a paying job in this recession, or you make, at the very least, eighty thousand every month for a few hours job every week. That's an hourly salary on perhaps ten-thousand. What do you have now? Three hundred?"

Negi looked at the money, uncertainty and fear written all over him, he looked from the money to Asuna and back again. His breathing was labored and he blinked repeatedly. In the end his shoulders slumped together and he nodded.

"I'll do it." He whispered. "I'll… I'll fucking do it." Fate smiled at him, a grim and superior smile.

"Good." was all the albino said as the gathered up seven of the bills and put them back in his wallet. "Kotaro-san will give you the details. Eighty percent of whatever you make is mine. Mahora is yours." With that, the albino got up from the table and left Negi staring into the table.

_"Fuck…"_was the word that went through Negi's head as he and Asuna took the commuter home. That was it…. He had thrown his lot in with Satan. He was a fucking drug dealer. Negi looked out through the window and saw in front of him how the cops slammed him into the wall and how Asuna was dragged away. Was this how he would raise her, with filthy drug money? He shook his head and felt disgust rise in him. It was then that he felt Asuna pull at his arm. He looked at his little sister and saw her worried expression.

"What's the matter niisan?" She asked. The little girl looked afraid, uncertain. "You look like you're sad."

Her worried expression made it snap for Negi. He grabbed her and held her tightly as he felt the tears begin to rise. Asuna yelped at the sudden move and Negi sobbed as he tightly hugged his little sister.

"I want you to know something Asuna." He said with a choked voice, "I love you. More than anything else… Never forget that." The little girl looked at her big brother before she hugged him back.

"I love you too niisan." She whispered into his ear.

In one moment Negi's hesitation was gone. He had to do it, for Asuna. He had said so many times that he'd do anything for her. If he backed out of this opportunity to give her a decent life he'd be the worst scum on earth.

For Asuna, he'd gladly even sell drugs.

* * *

A/N: I think the tone for this story has been quite firmly established and I want to drive that point home. This fic is very AU, it will be a very dark thing, people will suffer, cruelty will be overt and morals mean little. The rating and the genres are there for a reason so please do not read this if you are a sensitive person, you'll just feel bad about it. What more, this will not give an accurate depiction of the Japanese crime world, I am aware of that. Yet, that was not and will not be my goal.

Lastly, one great thanks goes out to Sweet Heavens, my co-author and advisor during this fic. Without him this would never have grown to this level.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

* * *

_The next day_

Negi sat at the kitchen table and looked at the clock. It showed six in the morning… He fiddled with a pen and tried to calm down. Today was Friday… Kotaro had said he'd be over at six with the shit he was supposed to sell. Asuna was still asleep though. She started school at ten today and Kotaro would be the one to bring her there. Negi would be the one heading over to Mahora to sell drugs to kids.

He felt the disgust bubbling up in him again. However this time it didn't affect his determination. He knew that his course was set but he couldn't help but wonder. Why had Fate, mr big bad Drug Lord, been so fucking insistent that it had to be him? It didn't make any sense. He knew enough to know that normally they would have found someone else.

But Fate had gone after him again, offered him a deal thousands would kill for and even insisted that it was he that should take it. Why? The albino was a man of honor, in his own twisted way, he was known to reward good work and never used any more force that the situation needed, but that still didn't make if logical that Negi was such a hot target.

A knock on the door broke him out of his reverie and he walked to let Kotaro inside.

"Hey man." His friend grinned. "Welcome to the drug-club." He said as he handed Negi a plastic bag with the goods. Negi hushed furiously and waved his hands in front of him. Kotaro noticed this and kept quiet. They both walked into the kitchen and Kotaro took out the drugs. Negi didn't know what he had expected but what he saw wasn't this. A series of small clear plastic bags fell out on the table.

"Here you go." Kotaro said dryly, "A hundred bags of the best weed on this side of whatever shithouse you can say. An ounce each, and each bag should net you about ten grand."

"That's…." Negi stared at the bags… "That's like a million here." He whispered in awe. Kotaro looked at him.

"You see?" the raven-haired young man said, every hint of joviality gone, "This is what I mean. We're talkin' more money than anythin' else. You ain't havin' no need for doin' overtime on that shit job no more. You're gonna make it big time here man." He put a hand on Negi's shoulder. "Time t' get hime a good life." He said softly. Negi nodded slowly and Kotaro put the drugs in the bag again. He handed them to Negi with a trusting smile. With it, he also gave him a brand new cell phone.

"Th' boss said he's given th' dickwad a call 'bout how he treats you." He said as Negi put on his shoes. Here's your phone. People'll text this number, tellin' ya what they want, you tell 'em a place, a time, an' a price an' they'll show there an' then with th' cash. Remember t' look normal at all times an' if th' cops come near, for fuck's sake' keep it cool. You're on your own on this one but if you ever get into shit with th' others I'm th' guy t' call 'bout markin' people. Clear?"

"Clear." Negi said and walked out of the door, Kotaro's casual attitude scared him, now more than ever, but he refused to let it show, "Make sure Asuna gets to school on time and try to not feed her burgers afterwards. If the teachers ask tell them I can't get off work for a parental meeting. When you take her home, check if there are any notes she has to bring home, Clear?"

"Clear." Kotaro grinned, "Now work well sweetheart an' I'll have dinner on th' table when you get off work." He added in a high-pitched tone. Negi groaned at him and gave him a shove before closing the door and leaving for work.

The commuter train rolled away from the station and Negi sat quietly, fiddling with the bag. An entire million Yen in drugs… and it was all just weed. It was weird to think of. He took a look on the note Kotaro had given him, on it was a series of names, places and times. He recognized some of the names and his eyes grew wide. Quickly pocketing the note he swallowed as the nervousness came back in full force.

He couldn't do this, he would fuck up, what the fuck was he thinking? Negi gripped the bag tightly and was almost about to throw it away when he suddenly saw Asuna's face in front if him. He took a deep breath as he loosened the grip on the bag. Fate was right, either this, or he would go back to doing that crap job fifteen hours a day and eventually get fired for stealing. He had to do it, for Asuna.

He looked down in the bag and saw the plastic bags, neatly rolled together. His thoughts went back to the phone currently resting in his pocket He still couldn't see how this would work. He saw himself standing in the alley behind the café in a long coat, whispering _"Hey, you wanna fly?"_to people as they passed by. The image made him laugh quietly. Yeah sure. That was bound to work well. Normal at all times Kotaro had said and that was how he'd do it.

The sun was slowly rising in the east as the train sped across the city. At every stop more and more people got aboard the train and Negi clenched the bag between his legs. All he needed now was some fucker trying to steal it. He hated the Japanese commuter trains. They were so fucking overcrowded at all times that it was ridiculous. Couldn't they come up with any better way of ferrying people around?

His thoughts were interrupted when the loudspeakers came alive and yelled that they were approaching Mahora central. He pushed his way up to the doors and got out through them just in time. Looking at the watch he felt his heart grow cold as he realized that he was late. Work had begun five minutes ago. Breaking into a run he darted through the streets and managed to get to the café in just five minutes, a new record. However he was in no capability of realizing this as he flew in through the employees' exit and came face to face with the boss.

"I'm terribly sorry sir." He begun to grovel, "I didn't mean to be late, it won't happen again I…"

"It's okay…" The old man said hoarsely. Negi stopped and suddenly saw the old man's face. Written all over the old coot was something he'd never seen there before. Fear. The old man looked positively terrified. His hands shook and his eyes were darting to the sides. Negi suddenly remembered how Kotaro had said that Fate had had a "chat" with his boss. Some part of him wondered what exactly had been said but, knowing Fate, it was probably nothing he wanted to know.

Instead, Negi went to his locker and opened the door. He put the bag inside and changed quickly. The young man noted, with a triumphant smirk on his face, that the old man said nothing about washing up. He clenched his fist in joy, hardly daring to think it was true. But apparently it was. For the first time ever, Negi walked out to the register with something else than anger in his heart.

* * *

Negi stood in a corner of the world tree stairs as school was coming to an end for the students. Someone had texted him about getting weed and this was where he wanted to meet up. Apparently this was the major hot spot for selling it. Negi could buy that. Just three feet away the place was swarming with people. He leaned against the stairwell and swallowed. It felt like he was getting stage-fever. At any minute now some fucker would waltz up and ask him for drugs. Said stuff was filling his pockets at the moment. He felt really, fucking, sick.

It was then that someone behind him whispered.

"H-hey? Y-you got the stuff?" Negi turned around and saw a young guy, perhaps fifteen. The guy was a real runt, with a scrawny body and thick glasses, who looked like he was about to faint any second. Negi blinked as he realized something. That guy had to be ten times as nervous as him.

"Depends…" He said for some reason. The youngster looked even more nervous and looked around. "What did you want?" Negi continued, desperately trying to not scare him off. This was worse than he had thought. He could swear that everyone was staring at him.

"M-marihuana?" the guy asked and Negi nearly laughed out loud. Who the fuck called it that outside health class? However he forced the laughter down and swallowed.

"You know the price." He said, suddenly feeling unnaturally calm. It was as if all the nervousness had just run off him "Not gonna haggle."

"Yeah, fine." The young man took out his wallet and fiddled through it. Negi panicked, acted immediately and shook him.

"What'chu doing huh?" He yelled with a jovial tone, "Just 'cause you're gay doesn't make me that! Copy man?" The people around them looked at them for a second before returning to whatever they were doing before Negi's yell. He pulled the kid close and hissed. "You don't take out a fucking wallet here! Do you want to get me arrested?" The adrenaline pumped in his veins, that kid just had scared the shit out of him.

"Sorry!" The young man croaked, "Sorry!" He got a pair of bills out of the wallet and Negi snatched them before dumping a bag in his hand.

"Now get lost." Negi snapped as he pushed him away, desperately wanting to her rid of the idiot. The young man looked at the bag.

"B-but I paid for two." He said.

"The second is stupidity fine! Get lost!" Negi hissed and the young man fled. He looked after the young man a few seconds before he stated to tremble so badly that his feet didn't support him. He had to lean against the wall to stay up and felt like he'd throw up. After a minute his stomach calmed down and he could get up. He did it… he really did it! Taking a deep, shaking breath he left the place, deciding to take a walk while waiting for the next customer.

* * *

When Negi sat on the train home he was numb. His head felt like a sponge and he was exhausted. He had remained at the spot for four hours. The four longest in his life. After the little geek more students had texted him. One after one the bags had disappeared out of his pockets. He had, in the end, been able to sell about ten bags of it. One hundred thousand Yen now burned in his pockets. A hundred ten thousand, he corrected himself. That first guy had scared the shit out of him. What kind of fucking idiot started fiddling around with a wallet like that?

He shook his head and tried to clear it. The day had gone off without a single hitch after that; the following customers hadn't been fucking idiots. Quickly handing over the bill and then get what they wanted. Some guy had asked for heavier stuff but Negi had told him he didn't have any. Still… he had managed to pawn off a bag to him.

One question still burned in his head though. What the fuck was he going to do with the remaining ninety bags? The answer was pretty fucking obvious though. He'd just have to go back there tomorrow. He felt the exhaustion return and was almost about to cry at the thought, he couldn't fucking do that again, he had been so god damn afraid he was about to puke. After trembling like a leaf for a few minutes he tried to calm down again.

"It went well, didn't it?" he thought to himself as the train rolled in on his station. _I did it and I can do it again." _got up from the seat and left the train in a daze. Night had fallen a long time ago and the only light available was the few streetlights not broken. It was that that made him miss the guy following him until it was too late. Before he knew it he was suddenly hit in the back by a strong hand. The air was thrown out of his lungs and Negi was thrown to the ground. He quickly rolled around and kicked in the rough direction of the attacker. When he got on his back he saw who it was.

Hunching just outside the radius of light given by the streetlight was Kotaro. He had the biggest, shit-eating grin imaginable on his face and was holding a beer bottle in his hand.

"For he's a drug-dealin' fella, for he's a drug-dealin' fella, for he's a drug-dealin' fella! Which nob'dy can deny!" The black haired young man sung as he looked at Negi. As his friend got up from the street he handed the bottle to him. "Time t' tell Kotaro-niisan all about it." He said as he grabbed the remarkably less enthusiastic Negi. "Let's dump th' stuff at home an' we'll go out for a beer you an' I."

"Let me go!" Negi tore away from him and looked at his friend with a furious look on his face. "You think I like this shit?" He yelled, "You know how fuckin' terrified I was today? He saw red as he grabbed Kotaro. "I spent four hours selling that shit! At every second I was sure I saw the fuckin' cops! " Negi shook his friend, seemingly trying to strangle him. "I can't fucking do this!" He screamed, "I can't be that afraid every fucking second!" Everything he had kept in came pouring out together with tears as he broke down and begun to cry. He shoved Kotaro again, but this time it was without any real strength and he only stumbled into his friend.

Kotaro then grabbed Negi and hugged him tightly as his old friend cried like a baby. He chose to shut up that moment and let his friend get it all out. Even iron-Negi had broken down after the first time. Kotaro smiled to himself despite the situation. That meant Negi was serious. That he wasn't any idiot who thought he was god. He didn't expect him to be it but still… After a while Negi's sobs stopped and Kotaro led him to a bench nearby. They both sat down on it and Kotaro threw Negi a napkin he had had lying around in his pocket.

"You getting' cold feet?" Kotaro asked after a while. Negi just shook his head at this.

"That's a sure-fire way to getting a one roomer at hotel six feet under." He said, as he blew his nose and threw the napkin away. "It's just…. I was so fucking terrified today. I'd only been there for a fucking minute when some idiot wants to buy some and takes out his fucking wallet in front of everyone!"

Kotaro listened patiently as Negi told his friend of how the first sale had gone. Kotaro listened quietly to the story but when Negi told him about the "stupidity fine" his friend begun to laugh like a maniac. Negi stopped telling the story to watch his friend who laughed so hard that he fell off the bench. It took nearly ten minutes for Kotaro to stop laughing and when he had done so he reached for his bag and took out two of the beer cans in it. Cracking them both open and giving one to Negi he held up his bottle.

"To the stupidity fine!" He said and got another attack of hysterical laughter. However he recovered much quicker from this one and took a deep swig from it. "That was awesome Negi." He said eventually as he stopped another chuckle. "Damn I wish I had been there."

"Wanna trade places?" Negi asked sourly. Kotaro looked at him and smiled.

"Seriously Negi." He said still with a smile on his lips but with a serious tone in his voice, "That was the best fucking idea I've ever heard of. That guy's never gonna mess up again. You handled it like a pro."

"You think?" Negi wasn't expecting that from him.

"Yeah…" Kotaro looked out across the street. "You're in it now Negi. This is th 'real deal. From now on it's just upwards. Twenty percent is yours. How much did you make?" Negi took out the bills. His friend whistled as he saw it.

"One hundred grand." Negi said, "Not counting the "stupidity fine." As he looked at the bills he realized how much money it was.

"An' twenty grand is yours." Kotaro said with a dead serious face as he looked at his friend. "When it's all sold you'll have a hundred right off. If you can sell two shipments every month you'll make two hundred grand a month. Compare that to the pay at the café."

"Yeah… yeah…" Negi said, his doubts about the job weakening in front of him at the prospect of those amounts of money. Asuna would get new clothes, real food, real Christmas presents. He could give her a decent life now.

"Hey Negi." He was broken out of his reverie when Kotaro spoke up. "You saw this?" He held up a poster. Negi looked at it and saw that it was about a large dance party that was going to be held at Mahora. It clicked for him in a second.

"You want me to go?" He asked Kotaro.

"It's gonna be a goldmine you know." His friend said with a calculating look on his face, "I'm goin' an' I'm gonna bring some heavier stuff. Speed an' E sells like shit there. I'm prepared t' split the money with you if we team up." Kotaro took another sip. "You take th' weed an' the other lightweights, I'm on heavy artillery. Deal?"

"What about Asuna?" Negi asked suddenly, he didn't want her to be alone at night, especially not around here. Kotaro shrugged.

"We'll find a babysitter for her. I know some pretty decent chicks that'd gladly make some money. Clean an' reliable"

"I don't want to dump her with just anyone." Negi shook his head. "I don't trust people around these parts."

"Well then who do you suggest?" Kotaro asked. Negi thought for a moment, absently taking a sip from his beer as he thought. Suddenly a face appeared in front if his inner eye.

"Takamichi." He said.

"Who?" Kotaro had never met the man in question.

"He's a teacher at Mahora, we kinda go back," Negi explained, "He's always wondering how thing are and shit. He's pretty cool if not for the "I wanna help you" thing. He'd gladly look after her"

"That's awesome!" Kotaro grinned," We dump her there an' then we can crash there too later on. Let's do it"

"Hey I never said I'd go." Negi protested but Kotaro just rolled his eyes.

"You really gonna pass up on this shit?" He asked his friend, "Ninety bags t' go man. You ain't in no position t' pass on these opportunities. 'Sides, its still th' Mahora cunts you're sellin' to, who cares about them?"

"True…" Negi admitted. He didn't make it any secret what he thought about the Mahora students. "Let's do it."

* * *

_Six months later_

Negi carefully, carefully moved his hands as he slowly tightened the knot. He had to be really careful here, if he made any sound it was over. The first one got fixed without any problem and he begun to do the other. His hands damn near trembled and he realized how nervous he was. Moving his hands he managed to tighten the last knot and stepped away to admire his masterpiece.

"Now you can look." He said to Asuna, who had been standing still as a statue. His sister opened her eyes and looked around. She couldn't see anything but she could suddenly hear a tinkling sound behind her. She looked back to see what it was but yet again the tinkling moved. Now Negi had to hide his mouth behind his hand in order to not start laughing and Kotaro's shoulder were shaking. She was just so cute! Asuna got more and more confused by the tinkling and eventually she was getting dizzy from trying to see what it was.

Now neither Negi nor Kotaro could stop it. They laughed so they had to support themselves against the wall. Negi however took pity on his little sister's confused look and held out a small mirror towards her. Asuna took it and with its help she could see what had made that noise.

In each of her two long braids a pair of golden bells now sat at the top, tinkling as she moved.

Today was Asuna's birthday and after giving her breakfast at the bed and sung to her (though Kotaro more yelled than sung) Negi had taken her downtown to the Harajuku district. He had claimed that Asuna's present was waiting there. In all honesty the trip had been more than enough judging from how Asuna had looked when they traveled the streets. She had been enchanted at first look by the vibrant shopping district.

Negi had then showed their destination, a small jewelry store at one of the side streets. The old man that ran the place had been delighted when he saw them both. Asuna had been told to stand still in the middle of the shop with her eyes closed while they got her present and she had eagerly complied, even though Kotaro had had to keep a look on her eyes. The old man had received the order from Negi three weeks ago and had put all his soul into making the bells than now adorned the little girl's head.

Asuna looked at the bells with a surprisingly serious look on her face, she kept the look long enough to make Negi extremely nervous but suddenly she smiled and hugged him.

"Thank you niisan." She said, "I love them!" Her smile lit up the room and Negi felt warm inside at that moment. Negi returned the hug and smiled, smiled because his life had gotten so much better, because he now could afford these things. Asuna got real presents, had new clothes and didn't have to go hungry the week before a paycheck. Life was so fucking good right now. For the first time in his life, he wanted this moment to last forever.

* * *

The happiness Negi had felt in that moment lasted in his heart for a long time. Even the next day, when he had to go to Mahora again, he still had a small smile on his lips as he got on the commuter train. As he sat in his seat and watched the cityscape run by outside he thought about how things had improved for him and Asuna these last months. Only three months ago he had been so deep down in poverty that it felt unreal as he looked back upon it. But now everything was, like Kotaro had said that winter evening, just upwards.

He looked down at the arm of his new jacket, an expensive black thing he had bought in Harajuku three weeks ago. He had finally gotten rid of that old coat that made him look like a bum and bought new clothes for himself too. Negi had felt like a girl that day when he and Kotaro had raided the stores of Harajuku to, as he friend said, "Pimp my pal." But in the end nearly all his wardrobe had been upgraded. Something that, a few months ago, would have been a dream.

He adjusted the strap on his shoulder-bag as he heard that they were approaching Mahora. Within that bag was that which had saved both him and his little sister from that shitty life and now allowed him to give her the life she deserved. The work hours were pretty annoying but he wouldn't trade it for anything. As he left the train he suddenly bumped into Takamichi, the grizzled teacher was running in the same direction as him and smiled when he saw him.

"Hey, Negi-kun!" He said briskly and he jogged towards the train station exit, "I hardly recognized you!" He nodded against Negi's new clothes and Negi quickly started thinking about what lies to pull.

"I got a raise at the café!" He said cheerily and grinned, "The old man finally found his heart!" He played the role of overjoyed café-worker flawlessly.

"Really?" Takamichi smiled at him, "That really good to hear, I must confess…!" the teacher grabbed hold of one of the cable cars and jumped aboard it, dragging Negi along, "…that I got really worried for a while."

"Really?" Negi asked as he leaped aboard too, "Hey there was no need for that, I've always managed nicely, as I said, and its just that recently I've had some money over."

"It's those night-shifts you pull isn't it?" Takamichi said, "I'm glad to hear that they need people on the dance parties too." Negi bit his tongue to remain impassive, what Takamichi didn't know what that those "night shifts" where when he hawked drugs to party goers on the spot. He had chosen to leave Asuna with Takamichi more times and now it was nearly once a week. "It's just that…" Takamichi faltered, "Watch out when you work there," He eventually continued, "There's apparently a lot of drug-use going on there." Now Negi had to bite down on his tongue even harder, oh the irony! If he only knew!

"Don't sweat it man." Negi said, "I'm not gonna start popping pills, too much hangs on me." He looked outside and noticed that he was near the café. "This is my exit," He said, "See ya!" He leaped off the cable-car before Takamichi could ask any more questions.

* * *

Dealing with drugs was, Negi had discovered, a really delicate business, especially when you tried to get new customers. Getting people hooked on drugs was something that took immense persuasion at times. At the moment he was dealing with an especially tough nut. Some idiot had pointed the girl, one of the girls from the idiot-class in fact, in his direction and said that "She'd get the kick of her life there."

However the girl in question was not the type of girl to start smoking weed just like that. In face she was a first-rate health freak. Negi had realized after only a few seconds that he was in deep shit. She wasn't the type who would just let him be if he failed with her, he'd have the cops all over his ass within a second.

"It's easy." Negi told her, "Just light it up, sip it, and relax," he showed the joint to the young girl,

"Okay…" the girl was not convinced; it was obvious from the suspicious look on her face. Negi cursed inwardly and wondered who the hell had given her the tip to go here. What was he; a trial version?

"You're doing a smart move you know." He told her, "Weed is clean stuff, just a way to chill. Unlike crap like LSD and all that. You know that shit?"

"Yeah, I heard of some guy at the university who though he could fly. They found LSD in his bathroom." She said

"That's what that crap does to you." He said with a serious look on his face. "It's so strong that you can put a single drop pure LSD in a tub full of water and then a drop of that water is enough to make you think it's growing trees outta your ears. Pure shit."

"And that isn't?" She asked, nodding her head in the direction of the weed he was holding, "it is drugs."

"So is alcohol," Negi shrugged, "and nicotine, and caffeine, even sugar can be a drug. It's good that you're not leaping head-first into anything here." He said, "Really, you are a smart girl. But it's just bull that weed's dangerous. There isn't one single study that can say it's really dangerous. I know hundreds who smoke all time and they aren't addicted at all. Why is it okay to gulp down gallons of poison, get crazy and puke all over the place, but not okay to light one up and chill?"

"Well…" She was faltering. He went for the killing blow.

"Tell you what?" He said with a kind smile, "I'll let you try the first one for free. Here." He put the joint in her hand, "If you don't like it, cool, I can respect that. Though you can't really say anything before you've tried, right?" He put a hand on her shoulder, "So come on, you're a tough girl, right? You're not gonna wind up like those crack-midgets who sit like Buddhas outside the nightclubs going all puff, puff, puff. Everyone drinks beer, but it's only those who can't handle it that becomes alcoholics."

The girl had a nervous look on her face. He could understand her; the first steps were always a real shaker. However he kept quiet now, best to not overdo it. After a few seconds she sighed.

"Eh, what the hell." She grabbed the joint, "You're right, I might as well try. It's free after all. But you are sure I'm not going to get addicted that easily?"

"That's the spirit missy." Negi grinned, "And yeah, I'm totally certain, it never happens. Just take some sips and see what you think, if you don't like it, throw it away and we'll forget about it all. If you do like it, you know where to find me."

"Sure." The girl grinned at him, her previous nervousness gone "And by the way," She said as she backed away from him, "The name's Yuuna, not missy."

"As you wish, Yuuna-sama." Negi bowed to her and the girl chuckled as she turned around and walked out of the alley. When she had disappeared Negi let out a breath he wasn't aware he was holding. It worked, she had bought it. All that was left now was dealing with the idiot that had told her about him. Fortunately he had managed to get the name out of her; all he had to do was waiting until said idiot rolled in.

It was then that a familiar face came wandering down the street. Negi recognized the guy that had fucked up so badly that first day. However he had, as Kotaro said, kept it up after that. Negi met his eyes as he walked past the alley and the guy didn't even slow down as he entered it, arrifing just on time.

"Morning." Negi said, "The usual?" the guy in front of him, Nakagawa Yuusuke, was one of the worst smokers Negi knew. Every time Negi met him, which was about once a week, the guy bought two bags of him, two ounces every week, eight in a month. From what he had understood from their short chats the guy was your average "pushed by the parents to study like hell" guy so it wasn't too surprising that he smoked weed like a bitch to be able to get some peace. However Yuusuke just shook his head.

"I gotta cut down." He said hoarsely, "If I don't pass the exams mom and dad will have my head. I gotta start focusing on the studies." Negi looked at him.

"Then perhaps it's time you stop fogging the head and clear it up." He said. Yuusuke looked at him with a wide-eyed expression. Negi chuckled inwardly, the guy probably though he suggested stop smoking. "Get it so clear that whatever you do its gonna be crystal clear." he continued.

"What do you mean?" Yuusuke said, his eyes betraying his agitation by their rapid blinking. If Negi didn't calm him down the poor guy would flee.

"Ritalin and Adderall." Negi said, holding up two fingers "instead of fogging things up, you become clear as its name. Everything becomes clear, you can study for hours and get everything straight, , the works. Study aid number one." Negi gave him a crooked grin. "With this, you'll ace the exams." He took out a small bag from his shoulder bag. It was different from the usual bags with brown contents. This one had pills in it.

"You really think so?" Yuusuke looked pathetic in that moment. His eyes were filled with naked hope and Negi couldn't help but feeling his contempt for everyone here flare up.

"I don't think," he said with his trademark calming and kind voice, "I know. This stuff is used by thousands for this very purpose. Just pop them, give it a minute and then you're Mr. Study buddy." He held out the bag. "Twenty grand and you're good to go."

"Wh-twenty!" Yuusuke stared at him. "For one bag?"

"Yeah, this ain't like weed, that you're using it to relax." Negi said, "This is a bit more, use it when it's the real deal."

"Okay." Yuusuke was, as usual, pathetically easy to convince. He gave Negi the bills and Negi handed him the pills. As Yuusuke left the area Negi wondered if the little twerp would be able to handle it.

He doubted it. But then again he didn't really care; if anything it made for more money for him.

That was a pretty funny part after all. In the beginning he had refused to sell anything else than weed. Any suggestions that he'd move on to more profitable stuff was blindly refuted. That stance on the matter had lasted a month. Negi had been asked repeatedly by one of the buyers at Mahora to get hold of Ecstasy for him. It was after the fourth demand that Negi had brought it up with Kotaro.

His friend had, in very clear words, told him that if he didn't get what the customers wanted he'd lose them. Mahora was a goldmine for drug-dealers and Negi would do a big mistake if he thought he was the only one around. If he got a reputation as someone who couldn't deliver it was bye-bye to the buyers. Negi had – grudgingly – gotten hold of the pills the guy wanted and suddenly realized how much more it would pay to sell E too when he saw the money he got for it.

However he had then realized how stupid he was. Why was he taking one step at a time? He was already well entrenched in everything, Fate could, and would, give him whatever he though he could sell at Mahora, his customer circle would expand and he would make a shit-load of more money.

That decided it. He had one day asked for more than just weed and from that day onward he had been dealing in damn near everything. Only the weed had given him enough to give Asuna a decent life. With the money from the other stuff she would have an even better life. Hell; there was even plenty left to buy him new stuff too.

Any moral qualms he had held about it was crushed by the fact that it was to the Mahora cunts he was selling it. This campus and everyone on it was the epitome of everything he hated and had been that for years. It was a filthy lie from beginning to end, a playground for the "perfect" people where they could drop off their inbred brats and have them raised to become just as "perfect" as the rest of their "perfect" families. If anything he was doing them a service, showing them the real world.

* * *

Asuna was waiting for him when he got home from Mahora. He gave her a hug and ruffled her hair; she only seemed to get cuter with every passing day. Especially now that she was wearing real clothes instead of the old stuff he had been forced to scrounge up for her before.

"How was your day hime?" He asked her and was bombarded with a swarm of information about what the day had contained for the girl that meant the world to him. Apparently the day had been really exciting to Asuna from what he could pick up from her quick talking. The words got mixed together and in the end Negi had to stop her.

"Wait, wait," He said with a laugh, "Did you just say that Sanji-kun climbed up the flagpole and saw a pink cat under the bushes and eat it as fruit-salad?" He couldn't make heads or tails of what she said.

"No!" Asuna yelled, still all fired up, she begun telling him everything again but this time he was at least somewhat able to understand her. When she had told him everything he hugged her and told her to go watch some TV and that dinner would soon be ready. Asuna obliged happily and ran off.

Kotaro had picked Asuna up from the school where she went to first grade. Since the guy worked night shift he usually got up just in time to fetch her. He was currently sitting by the table in the kitchen with a magazine in his hands. When Negi saw what it was he tore it away from him.

"Didn't I tell you to stop reading this shit in front if her?" He said and, without waiting for an answer, threw it into the garbage bin. "There we go." Kotaro got up from the table with a look of horror on his face.

"Th' fuck are you doin'?" He yelled shrilly, "That's a limited edition thing!" Kotaro threw himself at the garbage bin and fished it from the old food it was lying on. Negi couldn't help but roll his eyes at his friend who was currently trying to clean it with a rag and some water.

"Limited edition my ass. I can't believe you read that shit in the first place," "That shit," was a hentai doujin from Kotaro's favorite doujin circle. Said doujin was damn near illegal due to the explicit and sadistic rape and snuff scenes that filled it. Just the name, "Guro Revolution" said too much in the first place. Negi concluded that his friend was really fucked up.

"It is art damn it!" Kotaro defended his precious hobby.

"Art, my ass!"

* * *

_Three weeks later_

Weekends were by far the best time to sell the stuff. As the students ended school and got two whole days to spend as they saw fit even an idiot could see that those who smoked weed or took pills or whatever their stuff of choice was would choose this time to stock up. And if the school would host a "disco", or whatever ancient term from the age of dinosaurs they used, the demands for party stuff spiked. Some dealers only worked then, churning out E and speed for idiotic prices.

Negi had little respect for said part-timers. All too often they were students who needed quick cash for their own drugging. They made him sick; they already had plenty of cash and started to sell it to finance their uncontrolled need for kicks. And as the same time, they destroyed the marked for people like him, who really needed the money. A large part of him wanted to give Kotaro a call and have him beat them all up. He wasn't stupid though there were dozens of students who did that and he wasn't in the mood for becoming known as the "Mahora Mutilator".

He had plenty of buyers anyway. Many of the new ones later had apparently been told that he was a "safe" guy who handled "clean" stuff. The revelation that the weed buyers said that made him damn near laugh. Those naive fuckers though that smoking some pot made them bad-ass junkies. He was half in mind to spice the weed up with some bad shit just to give them some bad trips and a lesson about what they were allowed to think of themselves.

But for the moment he was satisfied with standing in his corner of the plaza and sell his stuff. Especially now, as Saturday night and the "disco" was approaching, he'd sell like hell. E, speed, GHB, the list of what the party-people wanted made Mahora like a smorgasbord to him. He smiled to himself as he thought of how many customers he might get. They almost formed a line into his corner.

That was why he got so agitated when he saw that someone was already there. Some fucker was sitting in the corner he had texted his customer about! Taking up his space! He marched into the alley, seeing red, when he suddenly stopped. In the alley a young girl, pale-skinned and pale blue haired, was sitting with her legs pulled up to her chest, her arms resting on her knees and her face buried in said arms. Choked sobs were escaping her. Great... just what he needed. Some crybaby had run into his corner and would take up the space, he needed to get rid of her fast, the buyers would be here soon and he DIDN'T need her as background decoration.

"What are you doing?" He asked her before stopping as he realized how that sounded, real smooth Negi, real smooth. The girl looked up at him through tear-filled eyes and suddenly she, to Negi's immense surprise, jumped at him and buried her face in his jacket. Negi stood like fallen from the skies and wondered what the HELL this was about. The girl was shaking like a leaf as she was wracked by sobs; Negi thought fast as he grabbed her shoulders and gently pushed her away. Looking at her face he remembered her from somewhere. After a second he remembered her as that quiet friend of Makie, that pinky that terrorized him at the cafe. "What's the matter?" He asked her again.

The girl looked away, seemingly trying to hide that her eyes were red from crying and spoke with a hoarse voice.

"I messed up," she sobbed; "I had the most important thing ever and I messed up." she was now crying openly. Negi rolled his eyes mentally, great... a sob story. He needed to end this fast. "Why did it have to go this way?" She cried, "I wanted to do it so much..." Negi gently put his hand over her mouth and silenced her

"Let me tell you something." He said, "I don't know what happened but know this. Shit happens, it's cruel but true. Life isn't kind to people, it's sadistic. You messed up and it will happen again, over and over, you can't escape it. And crying won't help it, it just makes it worse." The girl looked at him with wide eyes; she apparently wasn't expecting that from him. He tried to figure out some way to make her leave without wailing like a baby. It was a spur of the moment thing that made him pick up the small bag with the joints. He took out one of them and gave it to her. "But here." He said, forcing his face into the calming visage he used when selling, "This will make it all better. Life is a bitch but with these things it'll get all better, one of these and you'll laugh it all away. That's all you can do, laugh, and these babies will help you."

"I..Is that..." She looked terrified; she probably had understood what it was. However Negi smiled at her.

"It's all right, they won't kill you. It's not like cocaine; it's like a beer, a way to chill. You look like you need some help to forget everything and these guys are here to help." He pressed them into her hands, "Take them, they are free. Take them and forget the world. Just live for the moment and let the moment be beautiful. Okay?"

He smiled again and the girl's eyes were wide as she looked at him, Negi noticed how the blush spread across her face and rolled his eyes mentally again. She looked at him with what he only could compare to the adoring eyes of a puppy. But in the end she looked down at the joints and Negi gently pushed her out of the corner.

"You better go now." he said, "Evening is coming soon and it's not a good idea to be outside at night nowadays." The girl looked at him one last time before she nodded and ran away. Negi took a deep breath. He did it, the little bitch was gone. Now he could get on with the real business. His first real customer today was someone he recognized well, a university student named Serizawa. He was one of the few people around here that was the real deal when it came to using drugs, something that was funny seeing as how he was the leader of the student union and the captain of the biathlon team. He was the one who had gotten Negi to step up to the other stuff too thanks to his insistent requesting. Negi was really grateful he had stepped up before Serizawa dug up some other dealer. This guy was a gold mine in himself.

"Party time?" He asked and Serizawa fired off one of those conceited smirks, which he probably though was a cool smile, of his. Negi hated that smile.

"You know it." He said with a pathetic attempt to sound like Negi's street language. His upper-class voice mangled it all and made it sound like shit. Negi hated that voice too. "Not too hot stuff but I'm not gonna let the party down." And yeah, he had megalomania too, thought he was God's gift to the girls.

"Can I take your order?" Negi asked and Serizawa got a pondering look on his face, oh great, now he would get snooty and start to talk about vintage and shit. The moron thought that buying drugs was like buying wine.

"Hm... let's begin with the Three-S... three bags like those you gave me before." Negi had, when realizing that this guy was a snob that only bought the best available, pulled several lies out of his ass about the stuff he sold. He gave the idiot the same stuff as everyone else but made him pay double for it after giving the drugs some fancy names. Speed was Three-S, E was EHG-45, GHB was Atlantis, weed Twister ect. ect. However he just nodded to the guy in front of him. "Two bags of EGH-45... and ten Twisters." Negi started to dig through his bag.

"No trips to the sunken city?" He asked with a little surprise in his voice, the creep in front of him always used the GHB for his date-rapes. The guy was a sex fiend of rarely seen dimensions. Serizawa chuckled derogatorily.

"Like I would need that stuff for something as small as this." He said arrogantly, "Do you use grenades when hunting rats?"

Negi gritted his teeth and wondered how this fucker could push all his buttons so easily. Was he really this stuck up by nature? He suddenly lost a large part of his remaining faith in the world. But business was business.

"I wouldn't know," he shrugged, "But it's always best to be safe isn't it? You never know when some bitch that doesn't understand how things are pops up. You know; thinks that she has the right to say no, doesn't get who you are, that stuff. Thing is that those frigid bitches need some dick. They need someone to bang them so they can relax. And who would be better for that job than you, the big bad Mahora Mack Daddy?" Negi doubted that Serizawa even knew what Mack Daddy meant but the blond student still puffed up his chest like a rooster at this.

"Good point," Serizawa failed spectacularly in trying to be modest. "Let's take three Atlantis too." Negi wondered if he was planning on a zombie foursome but obliged and took out the goods.

"For you. I'll make it all a package-price of five-hundred grand." Negi said after he made some rough estimates, and added the fancy-fee of course. Serizawa was nothing if not loaded with cash and gave him the money in a heartbeat. The way he handled the money, acting as if he didn't give a shit about it, made Negi hate him even more. But as usual he smiled and took it. It was way easier to do that when you made five hundred grand and kept twenty percent of it than when you made five hundred and got about one half percent. Negi still worked at the cafe, he had to keep up appearances and, since the boss had stopped to terrorize him out of fear for Fate's threats, he had discovered that he actually liked cooking.

As the Friday ticked on more and more customers came rolling in and Negi would have cackled madly if he was disposed to such things. It all sold like crazy, Next evening would become a real blast it seemed. If he counted correctly half the students would be high on something. As night fell he decided to give up for today and haul ass out of there. There wasn't too much left to sell anyway. When the day had ended he had made nearly two million Yen. And twenty percent was his. Four hundred grand. That was almost half of what the entire first shipment had contained. God he loved this job, he didn't like the drugs but he'd be a fucking whore if it paid this well.

In his happiness he didn't see the two men coming up behind him before it was too late. Before he knew what was happening a baseball bat collided with the back of his head. Seeing stars in front of his eyes he was thrown to the ground, he tried to get up again, his instinct telling him what was going on, but before he could got up again the bat collided with his back.

The world exploded in pain and he kicked to the side, feeling his legs hit something that fell on top of him he immediately grabbed hold of it and bit the first part he could get hold of. The taste of blood filled his mouth and he could vaguely hear a scream. Then his left chin suddenly burned as something cut into it and he let go. The guy on top of him got off and then the kicks started. The air was forced out of him as kick after kick hit him. His last thought before everything went black was. _"Asuna!"_

* * *

_A/N: The massively positive response I got on my first chapter here really amazed me. I'm happy to see that it's going so well and I hope you'll keep following me through this descent into darkness. As I've said before and I'll say again: this story doesn't end its descent any time soon, squeamish people beware. _


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

* * *

Kotaro was getting antsy. Over two hours had gone since Negi was supposed to be home. Normally the guy was like a clockwork but now he was like gone up in smoke. Little Asuna was getting curious too. Kotaro wished that Negi would get home, he did like Asuna but he sucked at the whole comforting thing. That was Negi's division.

The little girl was currently drawing something in her room; she had done that for hours now. Whenever Kotaro had looked inside she had chased him out, she could be pretty forceful when she wanted to. The fact that he was chased away by a little first grader girl was something he'd never live down if it came out on the streets. He chuckled to himself as he thought of it. On the streets he was known as a guy to never cross, his connections to Fate and his personal rep gave him the same rep as the samurai of old, the guys who could cut down someone in broad daylight and get away with it.

But in this apartment he was fucking "inu", the clown that always would buy hamburgers for the little girl and gladly took her to zoo and shit when "niisan" was working overtime. If that got out he'd be the laughing stock of the underworld.

After a few more seconds he suddenly got up and opened one of the lockers, he was sure that Negi had bought some potato chips last time he bought food. After some rummaging he saw the bag and grinned to himself. Fishing it out he had just taken a big mouthful when the phone began to ring. Kotaro rolled his eyes, stomped out into the hall and answered.

"Whu?" He answered; his mouth full with half-chewed chips. A polite voice asked him is she had come to Negi's phone. Kotaro was surprised when they used his last name too, he hadn't heard that one in years. He swallowed the chips so that they could get what he was saying.

"Yeah? What about it? If you're sellin' somethin' you can go fuck your mom." He said. For a few seconds the line was silent, then the voice begun to talk again. Kotaro listened to it and suddenly his heart froze. The voice told him, in a direct and no-nonsense manner, that they had found Negi beaten unconscious an hour ago. He was currently at the hospital with a severe concussion and several knife-wounds. The phone dropped from Kotaro's hand and a single thought went through his head.

How the fuck was he going to tell Asuna about this?

Then, as if fate wanted to fuck him over real bad the little girl chose this very moment to come out of her room. She was holding a paper in her hand and looked around the hallway. When she saw that it was Kotaro that had dropped the phone and the expression on his face she froze. Kotaro picked up the phone quickly.

"We'll be there right away." He said before hanging up. Asuna still looked at him.

"What had happened?" she asked him, "You looked scared Inu." She looked frightened too; whatever that could scare Inu was bound to scare her, she knew that much. Kotaro didn't find any words to explain what had happened to her.

"Get your jacket, we got t' go," was all he could say to the little girl.

* * *

Negi opened his eyes again and tried to move his head. His neck was just as stiff as before though, he had to strain himself so much that the pain blinded him. It was probably best to just lie still.

He had woken up from his unconsciousness when the ambulance had arrived, what people said about loud noises waking the dead was right. He had tried to get up but the EMTs had stopped him saying that he shouldn't move. In his daze he had started to look around after the bag, realizing that if they found it they would find the drugs. When they started trying to stop him he had begun to flail around and it was only when he saw that it was gone that he stopped.

The EMTs had put him in the back of the ambulance and rushed him to the hospital. Everything had been an unclear blur as he was taken to the emergency ward, stitched up by the doctors and put in a hospital bed. It wasn't clear to him just how badly fucked up he was until the doctor told him.

Fuck…

At the moment he was lying in one of the bedrooms, doing his best to heal up and thinking over the situation. Two million and a bag with plenty of drugs left in them… all gone. It was obvious where this would lead for him now. Fate would have his head. The albino didn't tolerate failures, he was infamous for that.

The sound of an opening door shook him out of his thoughts and he opened his eyes. The situation only worsened when he saw the last person he wanted to see him in this condition, namely Asuna, enter the room. The little girl looked at him and from the way her eyes widened he saw that she recognized him instantly.

* * *

"N…niisan?" Asuna whispered with a trembling voice. The little girl looked at her big brother with wide, terrified eyes. Her big brother, the strong, invincible brother that had always been able to do anything… What had happened to him? What had done this to him? Her big brother looked like Sanji-kun's forehead had done that time he fell from the tree. But niisan looked like that all over.

She started to slowly walk forward, her legs moving on their own, and reached the bed where niisan was lying.

"Wh…what happened to you niisan?" She asked him as she felt the tears threatening to spill forth. How could this happen to her niisan?

Niisan looked at her through swollen eyes and then he smiled at her. His hand slowly lifted from the bed and landed on her head, ruffling her hair. Asuna's eyes now flooded and she begun to sob, the tears ran down her cheeks and she started to cry.

Suddenly the door slammed shut behind her and she looked back to see that Inu was gone.

* * *

Rage: It screamed in his head, cried out for blood. When Kotaro had seen what had happened to his best friend his mind had been filled with a red haze. The sight of the guy he saw as a brother beaten to a pulp and little Asuna crying had made it snap completely and now his head screamed for the blood of the fuckers responsible.

He turned around to quickly leave the room; he had only just as much sense left as to not go berserk in there. However, as he did so he came face-to-face with a doctor who was just about to enter the room. This was the reason why he grabbed hold of him and pressed him to the wall, screaming into his face.

"Who did it?" He roared, the doctor only stared at him in fear. Kotaro slammed him into the wall again "Who?" He repeated at the top of his lungs. The poor man in front of him was at loss for words. Before Kotaro could do anything more though he was stopped by a voice that cracked like a whip.

"That's enough!" Even Kotaro stopped when he heard the sharp command. The voice wasn't raised at all but still echoed through the room. Looking back, Kotaro saw the source of the command standing further down the hall. It was none other than Fate himself. The albino stood, as usual flanked by his two guards, with a grim look on his face, his red eyes drilling into Kotaro.

"Let that man go." Fate said, his voice was calm but the undercurrent of steel was an obvious sign of that he was deadly serious, as was the way his guards started to approach him. "Now." Fate continued and Kotaro let go of the doctor.

"Fate…" Kotaro said; still out of his mind with anger, "Look at him!" he yelled, "Look at what the fuck they did to him!"

"I was about to," Fate said, just as calmly, as one of his guards led the terrified doctor into the room. "But I was interrupted by a man that seems incapable of acting like a rational human being." Kotaro flinched at the tone in his voice. He was actually brought out of his rage by the voice. Fate was pissed… very pissed. This was not good. "Now if you are done making a ruckus I have business to do." Fate said before he walked into Negi's room.

* * *

When Fate entered the room Negi's heart froze. The albino had already found out that he lost both the money and the drugs. He was a dead man, Fate would kill him. His little sister looked around when she heard the door open and saw Fate. Unlike Negi she only remembered the albino as the man who had bought the jacket for her. She bowed slightly to him when she saw him, trying to suppress the tears.

"H-hello mister…" She said with a quiet voice, trying to be brave. However Fate put a hand on her shoulder and shook his head.

"You are strong to stop crying, little girl." He said, "But you don't need to, what has happened here is a terrible thing. No one will blame you for crying." With that, he gestured for one of the guards. Said man walked up to Asuna and gently lifted her up.

"Hey little one." The guard said, "Remember me?" Asuna did, it was Hiroshi who had told her about the fishes at the giant aquarium. The little girl nodded and Hiroshi smiled. "Your big brother and Fate-sama has some things to talk about, let's go outside for a few minutes. We'll be back soon anyway, okay?" Asuna looked at Negi who only nodded and eventually she nodded too.

"Okay…" Hiroshi smiled and left the room, still carrying Asuna. Fate leaned in towards the doctor and asked him quietly how severe the injuries were. As the doctor rattled off a list of the injuries Negi felt sick.

Even when not counting the blackened eyes and the swellings he still had a concussion, dislocated shoulder, broken nose, several broken ribs and a busted shin. He had also gotten several knife wounds, the worst one of them the one on his chin that had nearly cut all the way through into the mouth and the list went on. The fuckers must have continued after he was unconscious. He was currently as beaten up as one could be and it was pure luck that nothing was permanently destroyed, though the doctor said that he'd have a limp for the rest of his life.

Fate turned around when the doctor was done and walked up to Negi's bed. "An unfortunate affair." The albino said, watching his battered form. "You were careless."

"I…I can fix it." Negi croaked out but Fate stopped him.

"You are currently unable to even walk, how could you possibly repair this situation? At the moment there is only one thing you will do." Fate reached into his jacket and Negi's eyes widened. "And that is rest up." Fate continued as he put a thick envelope on Negi's bed desk. "This is your "insurance money"; use them to pay the hospital bill. When you get well again we can decide how to do with your job." The albino turned around and walked outside.

When Fate closed the door behind him he looked into Kotaro's eyes. Kotaro saw the steel in his eyes and realized that blood would be spilled now.

"No one touches my subordinates." Fate said; his voice cold like winter and hard like steel, "Find them and deal with them, send a message to their kin." Kotaro nodded, his lips curling into a predatory smirk.

* * *

_The next day_

"Good afternoon Kotaro-san." The man behind the desk said as Kotaro entered the room, "It has been a while, has it not?"

"It sure has man." Kotaro smiled at him, "How's things 'ere?" He asked the old man and looked around. The place looked just like it used to. "The place" was the official – official insofar as everyone knew that it was called that – name for the underground bar and drug-joint on the outskirts of the Tokyo slums. It was in truth little more than a cellar with some old furniture and a lot of moonshine behind the bar-desk. The owner of the joint was a weird old man who made his living by supplying the building's junkies with cheap drugs and the visitors with illegal liquors. The floors above the cellar were part of an old hotel that had closed several years ago and now was knows as "Junkie hotel" so the man had lots of customers.

Despite the place being the most run-down hole available the man who ran it was like taken from some old estate in England. Always polite and always methodical, almost ridiculously so, he made a weird impression as he talked with the guests, consisting of junkies and alcoholics who usually were too high to even know that day it was, with an incredibly formal and polite tone. The man was also infamous for his ability to know an interesting tidbit about everything. Somehow this weirdo managed to be the number one source of information in this part of town.

"Everything has been well with me, thank you for asking." The old man said as he carefully polished a glass. To what end Kotaro didn't know, it was already broken, as was many of the glasses here. "And you?"

Kotaro sat down on one of the rickety chairs after first checking that no one had pissed himself on it and went straight for business.

"You know Negi?" He said and the old man's brow furrowed for a moment.

"Ah, yes." The man said eventually, "Is that not the young lad with a little girl, a little sister I believe, and who works for Fate-sama?"

"That's him." Kotaro said, "Some fuckers jumped him an' beat him up, I'm after th' ones who did it. You heard anything?"

"Maybe…" The old man pursed his lips, "But I cannot recall anything at the moment, one's memory does tend to get a little…" He didn't get any further before Kotaro grabbed his hand and pushed it to the desk. The young man pulled out a knife and stabbed right between his fingers.

"I'm on Fate's business 'ere." Kotaro's eyes glowed with malice and he growled, even if he did like the man no one was allowed to fuck with him now, "An' he ain't likin' when people fuck up his people. You know what he ain't likin' either?" He asked the man, who now stared, wide-eyed, at the knife. "When people are coverin' up for th' fuckers who touch his men. Either you tell me now or I'm gonna have t' cut your little piano-fingers one by one an' stick them up your ass. Copy?"

"You do make an excellent point mister." The man forced a smile on his lips and tried to remain polite despite the sweat that was running down his forehead. "Three days ago two of the tenants of floor three came in here and bought a large amount of liquor from me claiming that they had something to celebrate. However: I could not help but notice how the bag one of them carried was bloody. After making some discreet inquiries as to where said bag came from one of them said that "Mahora was a goldmine." Perhaps they are the ones you are looking for?"

"What room?" Kotaro asked the man.

"I believe they live in room 318." The man quickly answered.

Kotaro let go of the man and put his knife back inside his jacket. Glaring at the man, who was currently holding the wrist of his hand and trembling wildly, he got off the chair. Kotaro reached into the other jacket-pocket and took out the bag inside. A small plastic bag containing some of the most diluted crack in Japan landed on the desk. The man quickly snatched up the bag and put it behind the desk and as Kotaro left the cellar he spoke up again.

"If I may, good sir, please try to avoid getting blood on the broadloom!" Kotaro didn't even acknowledge the cry as he ascended the stairs, heading for the third floor.

The building really was a crack joint of worst sort, the smell of…. well everything, covered the place. Sweat, piss, cheap booze and so on, even Kotaro gagged at it. This was really the shit-end of Tokyo, a fitting place for those fuckers to hide at. Kotaro walked through the corridor thinking that it was also a fitting place for them to die. After a minute he found room 318 and kicked the door open. Sure enough, one of the first things he saw inside was Negi's bag, lying on the floor.

"Bingo…" The young man smiled, his lips curled into a grin that would have terrified Asuna and deeply unsettled Negi, as he reached into his jacket and took out the knife again. Dropping his bag at the entrance he walked inside.

* * *

Half an hour had passed when Kotaro finally sat down in the only chair on the room. He took a deep breath and took out the cigarette packet, he was exhausted. Lighting it up, he took a look on the room. Blood covered everything, even him. The dirty mattresses, the broadloom covering the floor, even the walls had their fair share of it. His bloody fingers took out the cigarette and he exhaled a big cloud of smoke.

When he had found the fuckers he had been greeted by two very high and very aggressive junkies. They had charged him like two maniacs, wielding broken bottles. Kotaro's grin came up again and the rage returned, but this time joyfully. He didn't even need to use the knife to knock them down. He planted his elbow in the first's face with all he had, the fucker nearly vaulted backwards. Then, the other came and he kicked him in the nuts. When they both had gotten up again, the knife came out.

"Die…" Kotaro's grin was now truly inhuman, "DIE!" He screamed at he met them.

The first slash cut over the chest of one of them and Kotaro followed up with a punch in the gut before spinning around and tearing up the chin of the other. The second junkie threw up his hand to his mutilated face but Kotaro only stabbed through the entire arm, the steel blade biting as far as into the shoulder, locking the arm in place as it stuck. Headbutting the man Kotaro looked back only to see the first try to crawl out of the apartment.

Madly grinning, he ran up to him, kicked him in the neck and threw him back into the room. Locking the boor he stalked back inside to the second junkie, who still screamed in pain due to the knife that now pierced both arm and shoulder. Kotaro kicked him to the ground and grabbed the handle before he tore it out with everything he had, the red blood gushed out and the junkie wildly flailed, the second was still paralyzed from the kick.

"Please!" He yelled in panic, tears running down his face and piss down his legs, "please!"

"The money…" Kotaro growled, "Give me th' money and I'll think about it."

"Radiator! Behind the radiator!" The junkie yelled. Kotaro went to look and sure enough, a large pile of money was crammed behind the radiator and the wall. Taking it out, he threw the stack to his bag and turned back to the junkies. Advancing on them the second junkie's eyes widened again.

"But… no!" the man screamed as Kotaro raised his knife, "I told you!"

"And that's why I'll just do it with this knife…" Kotaro advanced, every trace of humanity replaced with his raging blood thirst.

He took his time. After one minute they were begging for him to stop. After five, they were unable to move. After twenty, they were unable to speak anymore since he had cut out their tongues. After thirty they were dead, both having bled to death. Their bodies now lay on the filthy mattress, their bodies torn open and their faces etched with a look of horror. The young man that now sat on a chair in front of them looked at them with a dispassionate look on his face. They lived as scum, they died as scum.

"I ain't regrettin' it." He said to the corpses, "Negi's my bro an' you pieces of shit beat him up so bad lil' Asuna couldn't even look at him without cryin'. This ain't half of what I shoulda done t' you." The corpses didn't answer. They rarely did, if they did it meant he hadn't done his job properly. The only thing he did mourn was the knife. He held up the blade, a nice switchblade he had bought from a guy in the slums, and looked at the blade that had broken just above the handle. The knife had been with him for about three years and in the violent torture he had subjected the junkies to it had snapped when he was carving out their guts. "Shit," Kotaro muttered, "How come it's only th' junkies who break my blades?"

Only one thing was left then. Kotaro took a sip of the cigarette and walked up to one of the bodies. Dipping his fingers in the blood he began to write a message of the wall. He paused and took up the note Fate had given him. Using what was on the note as reference material he eventually finished the message.

In large bloody Kanji the message "Jinkiritsu", or "Law of Man" now adorned the wall. It was a message to the filth in this building of what happened when you challenged Fate or touched his men. The albino meant that this was justice. The law of man, a justice built on loyalty to your group. Animals lived in the "eat or be eaten" world, humans had surpassed that though, theirs was the world where people cooperated, gave each other all of their strength. Negi had done an excellent job at Mahora, now he could reap the benefits. Those who tried to eat him had now been devoured by Fate. In that aspect the albino was a very philosophical man.

Hopefully this wouldn't happen again, the junkies that lived here would understand that stealing from Fate led to a gruesome death. And if they did; well… these old buildings burned well and fire exits were easily blocked. Kotaro took up a wet tissue from his pocket and wiped his hands to the best of his ability. Looking down at his clothes he realized that he would never get out of even the neighborhood looking like this. He walked into the small bathroom and checked the shower; to his delight it still worked even if there was no warm water.

With help of the shampoo he had brought along he washed the blood off his body and dumped the clothes in a plastic bag. After the shower he picked up the spare set of clothes he had brought along and put them on. Checking himself in the broken mirror he grinned, good as new. Kotaro picked up his stuff, walked out of the bathroom and left the apartment, merrily whistling, and got up on his motorbike.

About an hour later he reached his destination, a small communal school near the slums where Asuna went to first grade. The place was almost at shithole level too, most people would call it that but Kotaro knew real shitholes. The place was kept running, even if it was barely, and the teachers were out to actually to their job so that worked for him. Coming up on the school he decided to play a little and slid in on the schoolyard at full speed. When he neared the middle he twisted the bike and pulled the brakes with all he had, the bike slid along the concrete and several of the middle schoolers leaped out of the way. Kotaro ground to a halt just in front of the stairs where Asuna was standing.

"Care for a ride sweetie." He said with a cocky voice, grinning at how the other students were staring at him. Asuna leaped down the stairs and got up behind him as she put on the helmet he had gotten her when she first started to ride with him. Negi had demanded that she had one when riding with him. If she had died because of Kotaro's driving the only thing that would have stopped Negi from killing him was that Kotaro would already have gutted himself.

"Ready?" He asked her and Asuna "uh-huh"-ed in affirmation. The bike roared to life as Kotaro left the school in a whirl of old leafs and left the majority of the students in awe of what they just had seen.

After a quick ride through the streets of Tokyo Kotaro reached his destination. He had decided that Asuna, who still was somewhat depressed over what had happened, should get something good to remember so that was why he rode much more wildly than he used to. He was never even near loosing control but to the kid that now clung to his back it was a thrill without equal. When they got off the bike Kotaro grinned at Asuna.

"Now remember Asuna…" He began, if Negi found out about this heads would roll. Asuna smiled and nodded in a way only the cute child could do.

"Don`t tell niisan you were doing that on your bike," she said, and Kotaro nodded. However the girl continued, sweetly adding, "Sure! If you buy me hamburgers again."

Kotaro sweatdropped. He was being blackmailed again… by a seven year old. He suddenly felt his IQ take a hit. How the fucking fuck did this kid always outsmart him? However, in the end he really didn't mind the blackmailing. It was a part of the girl he loved. Kotaro grinned and lifted up Asuna on his shoulders as they walked away.

* * *

_Two days later_

"Hey man." Kotaro grinned at Negi as his friend came out from the hospital. After three full days his friend was allowed to go home again and Kotaro had gone down to meet him. His friend still looked like shit but at least he could walk now. Asuna, who had come along, leaped into his arms in a second and seemed like she was about to cry again. Negi grunted at the sudden weight, but held on to her.

"There, there." He cooed to her, "It's all right, I'm better now." He rocked his little sister in his arms and looked at Kotaro mouthing, _"Did everything go well?" _him. Kotaro nodded and pointed down the street towards one of the cars that stood parked there. When Kotaro had left Fate's office earlier that day the albino had lent Kotaro one of his cars. Kotaro guessed that Fate wanted Negi to remember that the pale man always repaid his debts and took care of his underlings.

"I borrowed a ride t' pick you up," He said as he took Asuna off Negi. "Come 'ere hime, its best if we don't make niisan work too hard dont'cha think?" Asuna looked a little ashamed but Negi stopped her from feeling down with a peck on the cheek.

"Don't worry hime, I'm just fine, I think that Inu just don't want to let you go. A ride?" The last was aimed at Kotaro

"Yeah I got t' borrow one when I went 'ere. Fate wanna make sure you get home this time." They both started to walk towards the car. "An' hey, Asuna, don't'cha think I'm nicer than Niisan anyway? I mean niisan doesn't let you ride on a bike."

Asuna just looked at him and suddenly she grabbed his ear and twisted, pretty hard too.

"Ow!" Kotaro was caught off guard and stumbled a little.

"Niisan is the best." Asuna told him with an evil smile on his face, "He's always the best. Understand?"

"Okay, okay, okay!" Kotaro said, "I get it, I get it!" The little monster went for his ears! That was the most sensitive point he had and she went straight for it like a bloody attack-dog. Asuna let go of him and smiled at him, this time it was her usual angelic smile.

"Don't worry Inu, you're just behind Niisan." She gave him a hug. Negi was currently fighting not to laugh at the whole thing, both because Kotaro would get pissed and that his ribs still hurt. However it was a pretty futile battle and only the fact that they reached the car stopped him.

Contrary to what Negi had expected it was a perfectly normal car, not one of the fancy ones he had expected a druglord to lend out. Kotaro put down Asuna, who immediately climbed into the back seat, and opened the door for Negi. His friend grunted as he slowly hunched and got inside, his body still aching. After about thirty seconds he had gotten in however and Kotaro shut the door. Walking over to the driver's side he looked back at the hospital, this shit wouldn't happen again he hoped. After a second he got into the car and turned the key, the car roared to life and they drew off.

"How was school today Asuna?" Negi asked as they came out on the main roads. However Asuna was quiet, she became subdued, and Negi looked back at her. "Hey, hime…" He asked, "Did anything happen?"

"She didn't go t' school today." Kotaro supplied, he knew what would happen now. "I let her skip it so we could get you."

"What?" Negi asked with anger evident in his voice, "What the fuck are you saying?"

"What you heard." Kotaro said, "She wanted t' see you be better after you got fucked up, got a problem with that?"

"What I got a problem with is that I'm working my ass off so she can get an education and you're pulling her out of there." Negi glared at him, obviously pissed.

"Well tough luck!" Kotaro slapped his hand into the steering wheel. Now he got angry with Negi, that conceited little fucker! "You ain't th' one who have had t' calm her down when she's cryin' her heart out, cause of you bein' too fuckin' blind t' not spot a pair of fuckin' junkies!"

"No," Negi retorted, pointing at himself, " I'm the one who has been working my ass off so she can get a better life, mr "I'm too fucking stupid to get her anything other than greasy shit to eat," just to see you let her skip school left and right as soon as I'm not there! You got no fucking right to whine at all!"

"Don't you fuckin dare t' play th' "martyr" card on me!" Kotaro hit the breaks and slid in to the side of the road. "At least she sees me other than after she's gone t' bed!"

"I'm fucking making money so we can have some food on the god damn table!" Negi grabbed the scruff of his clothes, "I haven't seen you try to chip in you cheap son of a…!" Suddenly the back door slammed shut and the two young men looked back only to see the back seat empty. Asuna's little red head could be seen through the window as she ran away from the car.

"Oh shit…" Negi suddenly realized what he had done. One of the things that separated Asuna from other kids was her fucked up background. As Negi got out of the car he remembered how she would panic whenever their former caretakers fought, which had been about two times a day. Negi had been forced to calm the little girl as she cried in fear from the loud and angry voices from downstairs. And now he and Kotaro had ended up doing that exact same fucking thing!

The two young men darted after her, the little girl running faster than what they would expect. They had reached the nearby city park when they finally managed to catch up with her. Kotaro was the first to reach her and grabbed her arm. However Asuna just flailed and tried to get away. It was only when Negi caught up with them and scooped up her in his arms that she begun to calm down, even if she was still crying with her hands over her ears.

"Hush, hush," Negi whispered, "It's all right, it's over… it's all over now… we're not fighting anymore, it's over… it's over hime." His soothing voice quivered with fear, fear that he had made Asuna break, last time this had happened she had been a wreck for days.

"I…" the little girl sobbed desperately, "I don't want you to fight!" She was devastated, "Please don't fight… I'll go to school as much as you want niisan… just don't fight!" Negi held her tighter and made more soothing noises.

"I'm sorry hime, it won't happen again, I promise it won't, never ever!" Negi got so angry with himself that he could have killed himself. How could he ever have fucking forgotten this! Kotaro also looked agonized; the young man was standing at the side, utterly incapable of doing anything, even rage at his own stupidity.

"Yeah hime…" The latter eventually said, "That ain't gonna happen ever again, I swear." He put up his hands in front of her and slowly reached out to pet her on the head but Asuna shied away, still terrified, Kotaro pulled back and nodded, "It's okay, hime, not gonna do it, okay."

For a few seconds they were both still. Then Negi softly spoke up.

"It's so stupid when these things happen," he cooed, "I just wanted to see you and now I'm being mean the first thing I do." He patted Asuna on the head, "Why don't we go and buy some ice cream and forget about all this?"

Asuna looked at him and wiped one of her red eyes with her sleeve.

"C-can we g-go to Hiruma Garden then?" She asked timidly and Negi smiled.

"Of course," He said kindly, "Hiruma Garden and all the ice-cream you can eat, is that okay?"

Asuna nodded slowly and Negi hugged her again, they all left the park and headed back to the car, any grievances between the two men forgotten for the sake of the girl they both loved.

* * *

When they had gotten Asuna to bed later that day Negi and Kotaro both sat in the kitchen and looked out through the window. After the fiasco earlier today they had both become totally devoted to Asuna and not said one word to each other that didn't directly involved her in the conversation too. However now she was fast asleep and tempers had cooled, instead now no one of them wanted to start. In the end it was Kotaro that took the initiative.

"Thing is I told her teacher 'bout it an' she insisted that I let her tag along." He explained, "An she also got homework t' do so she won't miss anythin'."

"Okay." Negi said… "Look I'm sorry 'bout all that… it's my fault anyway… just… I got so fucking angry after what those shits did to me… it feels like it's still in me and all I want to do is to find them and drown them alive.

"How 'bout stabbin' them both t' death?" Kotaro asked and Negi looked up at him, eyes wide.

"Don't tell me…" He said before calming down, for a few seconds he sat quiet and looked out through the window, trying to swallow the fact that Kotaro had killed the ones who had attacked him.

"Whatever!" he eventually said forcefully, seemingly trying to convince himself, a few more seconds passed, Kotaro watched Negi intently and in the end Negi spoke up again "good…" he concluded, finally admitting his satisfaction, "I just… good." Negi said, in his eyes something new now burned, Kotaro realized it was insight. Insight in the law of the world they both lived in now. Eye for an eye, why should those fuckers have been spared? Now Negi got that too. "Thanks Kotaro." Negi said in the end, "I owe you one."

"Don't mention it." Kotaro said, making a dismissing motion with his hand, "It was Fate's order you know, he ain't lettin' nobody touch his people, as long as you ain't screwing up he's th' best boss there is."

"Yeah, I saw that…" He nodded, remembering how Fate had paid for his hospital stay in a second, "Hell…" He chuckled, "I thought I was screwed when he came in at the hospital. I thought, "Goodbye, I'm dead," and expected him to cap me right there and now."

"Nah…" Kotaro grinned, "He ain't like that…" suddenly he stopped, "…not always." He added after a second and they both shared a chuckle at that. "Nah but really, he's really cool at times, even made a few deals with some of th' bars downtown."

"Yeah?" Negi asked, this was something now, "What kinda?"

"Eh, nothin' fancy," Kotaro shrugged, "just say Fate's name an' you get t' go into th' back rooms. Ain't th' VIP-lounges but it's a place t' talk without screamin'. Tell ya what, I'll show you it sometime."

"Yeah, sure, why not?" Negi said, he had no reason to not to go, it might even be fun. For a few seconds the two men were quiet, then Kotaro spoke up again.

"So… how was hospital?" He asked, "Any hot nurses?"

"Hell no!" Negi shuddered, "Only saggy old bitches and snotty brats, and don't get me started on the food. Only decent thing I ate there was when Takamichi came over and brought some real food along."

"He came over too." Kotaro asked, "Okay… how do ya know that man anyway? You ain't never explained."

"He's basically the guy that got me the café job," Negi said, thinking back, "I was wandering around Mahora right before the festival, seeking for anyone that needed extra help and he overheard me and pointed towards the café."

"So he's the bastard who stuck you there huh?" Kotaro scowled, he didn't like that place at all and if it had been him he would have butchered the owner years ago. But Negi defended the man.

"It was either find a job or loose Asuna," He said, "Takamichi's done thing things too at times, I think he's trying to help me get up here in the world."

"Just not in this way huh?" Kotaro chuckled, Negi soon joining it.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

* * *

_The next day_

Drug-dealing is a delicate business in places like Mahora; you have to make your customers relax and feel safe since they are buying things that would get them both thrown out of school and sent to jail. Dealing with a beat-up face and a large patch hiding a wound bad enough to warrant ten stitches will be like swimming with concrete boots. However Negi knew he had to do it, sick leave didn't exist in his line of business. Therefore he now hid in his usual alley as evening fell and waited for his customers. As so many times before he now stood in his alley and waited, only difference was that Kotaro was with him this time. He wasn't stupid, besides his friend had claimed that he had nothing better to do.

Asuna was at home with a girl Kotaro knew, the babysitter having rented some DVD for her. Negi had, obviously, checked the disc to see what she was renting. Expecting something like "Rape Revolution the Movie" he had been pleasantly surprised to see that she had actually gotten hold of a pretty decent thing for Asuna's age, something about a little turtle that went out in the world to yadda yadda. It was pretty much what he wanted her to see. Kotaro had also, as a bonus, made it very clear to the girl what would happen if anything had happened to Asuna when they came back. Negi had realized then that his friend had a greater rep than he let on, the girl had nearly pissed herself in fear, mainly when Kotaro buried a kitchen knife in the hallway wall, pushing it in to the hilt.

Suddenly the scrawny face of Yuusuke peered into the alley, the young man looking even more like shit than usual. Negi saw in a second that the little twerp had failed to handle the Crystal, as expected. Negi just smiled inwardly when he realized he had just gotten a good source of money. When the little twerp saw Kotaro his eyes widened and he was about to retreat when Negi motioned for him to come in. Kotaro pulled back a little so the guy wouldn't run and Negi spoke up.

"It's been a while Yuusuke." He smiled, but stopped when the wound on his cheek became strained.

"K-kami-sama!" Yuusuke exclaimed when he got a good look on Negi's face, "What has happened to you?" Negi grimaced inwardly; Yuusuke was too damn jittery to let this slide, the little scaredy-cat had to be calmed, now.

"I was clumsy," he said, seemingly dismissing the whole thing, "But don't worry, it won't happen again," He pointed against Kotaro, "He's here to make sure of that. Don't worry, he doesn't bite." He smiled with one side of his mouth, avoiding putting strain on the wounded chin. "You want some study-aid?" He asked, trying to get off the subject. Yuusuke shook his head, as if trying to clear it.

"Yeah…yeah." He said, "That stuff was amazing." He smiled maniacally, "I managed to study for an entire day straight. It was awesome! The exams will be a breeze!"

Negi's smiled as much as he could, while hiding his disgust for the guy, and picked out four new bags.

"Then I suppose these are something you want?" He asked happily, Yuusuke nodded and had fished out the money in a second. Negi noted again how easy it was for the twit to get out money. He had to be a rich boy. When he had left Kotaro whistled.

"Holy fuckin' hell…" He chuckled, "Gold customer that one." He shook his head, "That's gotta be the most gullible fuckin' retard ever. You should try t' get him hooked on more stuff, it seems like he can fish out as much money as he wants to. With a lil' luck you'll triple th' profit off him."

"That's the problem." Negi said, "I'm sure that I can get him hooked on heroin if I want to, but I'm trying to milk him slow and steady. I don't need a corpse on my hands; if he's a rich kid his dad will probably raze Mahora to find me."

"You're missin' something." Kotaro said, "Those fuckers ain't never gonna believe that there's dealers here, on their fine campus. They think that th' kids go off to th slums t' get hold of it. Get him hooked on all you can, they almost never track th' dealer anyway. A body is a body an' it's not like your personal mark is on th' stuff. They won't track you down."

"It's my neck if they do." Negi said.

"Whine, whine, whine." Kotaro rolled his eyes, "Hey, gimme one of your joints." He suddenly said, "I'm getting' bored 'ere, you're collectin' th' easiest money on earth, I can't get why you ever were worried."

"What the…?" Negi said, "You think I'm gonna let you smoke up my stock?" The fact that his friend smoked them was nothing new, he had known that Kotaro lit one up every now and then for years.

"Oh come on, It's just one." Kotaro protested, "You can share one with your best bud." He smiled and opened his arms against him.

"Each yen you smoke up for free is one yen away from my pay," Negi told him, crossing his arms in front of him, "You're paying like anyone else."

"That's you business attitude?" Kotaro asked, an annoyed look on his face, "How th' fuck do you get new customers?"

"Kotaro…" Negi smiled and clasped his hands, "You're not a new customer."

"Bah!" Kotaro took out his wallet and threw the bills at Negi, "Enjoy th' cash Scrooge."

"A pleasure doing business with you." Negi fished out one of the joints and handed it over before hunching down and taking up the bills. Kotaro lit it up and took a puff before stopping and taking a sniff on it. His eyes widened and he looked at his friend.

"Seems like I won 'ere after all." He grinned, "This is one of th' good ones, th' ones meant cost more than just that. Well thank you good sir for givin' me such a good deal."

"Who's to say I didn't mean for you to get one?" Negi asked his friend, "You do have VIP status in my shop," He winked at Kotaro who narrowed his eyes.

"Wow… you really took th' fun outta that." He muttered as he took another sip of it. "So…" He said after a while, "Who are th' other junkies?"

"The worst one would be Serizawa," Negi looked out of the alley to see if anyone was approaching, the area was nearly empty, "He's a creep, even freaks me out, he goes on everything that exists and nothing is too low for him. Half the GHB I sell here go to him for his date-rapes."

"No shit…" Kotaro chuckled, "Well… cash's cash… as long as he buys."

"That's' the shitty part with him," Negi said, "He's a snob and won't buy anything unless I lie my ass off about it being the fanciest stuff out here. I have to lie like a politician to him." Now Kotaro was laughing.

"No shit?" He asked incredulously, that was the most stupid thing this year.

"No shit…" Negi shook his head. "Well what can you do?"

"True that…" Kotaro agreed before looking behind Negi, "Incoming." Negi quickly looked back and saw Serizawa's smirking face approach. He quickly put on his business-face and turned to face the man he despised more than anyone on Mahora.

"Hey man." He smiled, "I suppose that the party was a blast since you were there."

"Do you even need to ask?" And the ass-hat was just as patronizing as ever, didn't even look at his wounds, "It was almost a waste of my time." He smirked that arrogant smirk of his. "I had to personally keep the whole thing from becoming a parody of a real party."

"Sorry to hear that." Negi said, inwardly wondering if it was possible to kill this guy and get away with it. "Hopefully the thing they are doing at Library Island this weekend will be better. The usual?"

"Yes…" Serizawa slowly said; a dangerous glint suddenly evident in his eyes. "You know something?" He asked, "I've been thinking about things for a while… I thought to myself one day "Why do I pay some back-alley scum enormous sums for something that I could get for free?" Negi was, in one second, stunned by the guy, who the fuck did he think he was? Serizawa mistook his inaction for fear and continued, "Seeing as how I can have to police here in one second I think its' time to renegotiate the prices a little, don't you think?"

Negi just blinked… this was unbelievable. However he noticed in the corner of his eye how Kotaro was slowly inching behind the guy. His friend seemed to get ready for something and Negi understood in a second. He only nodded and opened his mouth.

"Yeah…" He said, "Definitely, get him." The last two words were aimed at Kotaro who immediately responded. Before Serizawa could do anything Kotaro had kicked him in the back of his legs and sent him to the ground, Serisawa had only time to yelp in pain before Kotaro had planted a knee in his back and put his switchblade against his throat.

"Wh-what do you think you're doing!" Serizawa yelled in indignation. "Don't you know who I am?" He stopped talking when Negi stomped down on his hand, grinding the bones into the ground. "Ah!"

"Who the hell do you think you are?" Negi ignored his question, this guy had just pissed him off way too far to just let it slide, "Let me tell you something you little shit." Negi growled. Grinding his bones a little harder into the ground he spoke up again, "You see my face?" He pointed at his still bruised face, "The guys who did that are dead meat now. Do you really think that being the son of some piece of shit businessman will protect you? Well for your info, little prince, it doesn't."

"You'll regret this!" Serizawa hissed, "My father…"

"Isn't here now, is he?" Negi interrupted, "If you wanna play this game you'll just have to accept the consequences. And kids like you…" He looked at Kotaro who grabbed the man's arm, for a second he hesitated before he nodded again, "Doesn't belong here." The chilling noise of a bone breaking was followed by a scream of pain as Serizawa's arm was broken. Kotaro got of the young man and tore him to his feet.

"Get out of here." Negi said to Serizawa with a chilling voice and a sadistic smile on his lips, "And don't even think about telling the cops… I know where you live, don't think I won't do it." Kotaro shoved Serizawa towards the exit of the alley and the man fled, tears of pain streaming down his face. For a few seconds everything was quiet in the alley then Negi suddenly slumped against the wall, exhilaration and glee flooding him.

"God damn it…" He was laughing, "I've wanted to do that for months!" He had at last done it! He had put that arrogant little fucker in his place! Kotaro only looked at his friend with a raised eyebrow as Negi continued to laugh, loudly and happily, for several more minutes. In the end Kotaro grinned too, Negi was back in Mahora, big time.

* * *

_Two months later_

"..and that's how th' stupidity fine was created!" Kotaro finished, earning a pair of chuckles from his audience. One of the men nodded appreciatively at Negi, who was sitting next to his friend.

"That was truly a display of fast thinking Negi-san." The man said, taking a puff from his cigar. Negi just shrugged at this, he still wasn't fully comfortable about this whole thing. Out of the blue Kotaro had dragged him to this place. It was a seedy underground bar where one of the back rooms, little more than a concrete room with some chairs and sofas, a few tables and a TV in one end of the room, was open only to Fate's subordinates.

It was there that Negi and Kotaro now sat together with four other men, all of them apparently belonging to Fate's underlings. The man who had praised Negi's wits was easily the most colorful of them all. An effeminate face together with his suit, a colorful creation that was finished off with a pimp-hat, a long coat and silver jewelery, together with the cigars he smoked gave his the look of someone high up. He even had a pimp cane. Kotaro had called him a poser of the worst kind.

The other three consisted first of one of Fate's bodyguards, Hiroshi in fact, who wore the same suit as always, even had the sunglasses with him. The second was an old guy who looked like a bum, worn coat and all, and had the look of a first-class alcoholic in his eyes, eyes that nonetheless seemed sharp and aware. The last was a huge man with bulging muscles and a Mohawk haircut who had more scars than the average teenager would have dimples.

"I wish I could employ stupidity fine." Hiroshi said as he looked at his cards, "I usually have to shoot people when they mess up."

"At least they'll shut up quickly …" the thug pointed out, "Las` week this fucking old bitch couldn't pay up so I had to fucking slap her around a little." The thug felt his left ear and scratched it. "My doc thinks she nearly fucked my hearing to shit with the screaming." The thug rudely stuck his finger in his ear and then pocked it out and flicked it. "I was more surprised the old crack whore could scream that loudly."

"Have you tried earplugs?" Hiroshi asked. "I have to use them sometimes. But if you do use them, remember to throw them away after each time. Nowadays they can even ID people from their ear-wax."

"Gentlemen!" the Cigar guy suddenly said as he finished mixing the cards, "The table is open; minimum wages are five-thousand, one exchange only." His hands moved in a blur as the cards flew across the table and landed in front of the men. "Place your bets." Chips were pushed forth and they all looked at the cards, Negi was everything but experienced with cards but realized that what he had was shit. The men all threw the cards they didn't want, Negi ended up throwing three of them, and new cards were given. Negi's eyes widened when he saw what he suddenly had gotten and he quickly schooled his face into an impassive look.

"Anyone who wants to raise their bets?" the man with the Cigar asked and the thug threw his cards onto the table.

"I'm out." The burly man growled, "I musta pissed in Lady Luck's beer or something."

"I'm raising twenty." Hiroshi said and pushed out his chips.

"Me too." The bum wheezed. Kotaro and the Cigar-man raised too, finally it came to Negi, who though for a while before he took up double the amount of chips.

"I call and raise another twenty." He said and noticed the Cigar-man having an amused glint in his eyes. The raising went on and eventually both the bum and Kotaro had folded.

"Good luck man." The latter had said to Negi and now Negi and the Cigar-man was facing off against each other. The cigar-man smirked at Negi, the amused glint still glowing in his eyes.

"Are you certain you know what you are doing?" He asked, "That is an awful lot of money." He put out chips for a hundred thousand Yen. "And now there will be even more. If you take this bet you might end up losing two hundred thousand. Is it not a better idea to cut your losses now? While you still have a chance?" he fiddled with his cards, "Unless you hold a Royal Straight Flush you are out in dangerous water. There's always bigger fishes, you are nothing but a small frog out on too deep water, is it worth the risk?"

"Same to you." Negi pushed out an equal amount on the table, trying not to show how nervous the man had made him. Without waiting for a reply he threw his cards on the table. "Full house: Aces and Kings, Speed gives you wings, I win." He reached out across the table and collected his winnings. "Care for a second round?" he grinned, collecting his winnings as slow as he could to rub in how much he had actually won, "Or should I just treat you all to a drink since I don't exactly have to worry about cash for a week or two?"

Kotaro broke out in a howling laughter and the Cigar-man's trademark dropped from his mouth before his lips curled in a snake-like smile.

"Let's keep up the game." He said "And how about upping the bets a little? Double or nothing perhaps? If I win all the gains, including your remaining chips go to me, if you win, I'll give you all I have."

"Give it a rest man!" Kotaro laughed and looked at the man's pile of chips, compared to Negi's pile it was pitiable. "You ain't got nothing t' offer that's gonna make up for th' risk."

"How about a night with Sakura?" The man took a sip from his cigar and the table fell silent. "One night with the finest girl I have, a girl that usually would cost three times as much as what I have left." He continued. "The cherry-blossom of Harajuku will be my wager."

Negi's eyes widened again.

"Y-you mean Sakura as in the girl who fucked that minister?" He asked with a dry mouth, "Who got him fired when she told the press?"

"You gotta be fucking shitting me." The thug said with a choked voice. "Take it," he told Negi, "Fucking take it! She's the best whore in Tokyo, there's a fucking waiting list for her!"

"Man…?" Kotaro said quietly, he was salivating; she had to be good. "I'm not good enough to even speak to her when she visits the boss." Negi felt his shoulders be pressed down a little harder than what many would consider friendly, "If you ain't takin' this bet I'm gonna drown you in th' Tama river." Kotaro continued, "She's that fuckin' good."

"You're serious?" Negi asked and the Cigar-man nodded, "No bullshit," the man shook his head, "A whole night with her?"

"From eight in the evening to eight in the morning." The man took a puff of his cigar. "I'll let you skip the waiting line and whatever you wish, she'll give you. But that is only if you take the bet."

"You'll never have this opportunity again," Hiroshi smiled at the whole thing, "It would seem that you pissed Albireo off enough for this to happen. Normally you'd have to be at Fate-sama's level for something like this to be plausible"

"Time is ticking, little man." Albireo said, "What will it be?"

Negi went through an inner crisis. Despite everything that had happened he was still a man with somewhat intact morals and something within him protested vehemently at the thought. However he had, for over half a year now, lived in this world where morals were cheap and dangerous and money everything. It all was for Asuna, he knew that. If it wasn't for her he'd never have done all this.

But still… why not reap some of the benefits for himself too? He was a young man, with desires like everyone else. With Asuna at home sex was something he had had only about two times before. A whole night of sex with Tokyo's best… he eventually pushed back the chips. He hadn't had sex in a year and he fucking wanted some, that simple.

"Let's do this." He said, the thug and Kotaro both cheered. Hiroshi took up the cards and begun to mix them.

"Same as before," Fate's bodyguard said, "One exchange." The cards were placed out and Negi took up his. Looking at them he realized that, just like before, he had zip in the beginning. He kept his cool and looked over the cards; he did have three spades… perhaps go for a flush? No… Kotaro had once said that going for flushes was to piss into the wind. What else? He saw nothing… in the end he decided to go for the flush. He threw two cards and saw how Albireo only threw one. He started to feel cold sweat running down his neck, did the man try to bluff now or did he really have all that? As they got the new cards Negi only thought one thing.

"Fuck…" he had a pair of twos, nothing else. He was screwed.

"No raises, they are all out." Hiroshi said, "Cards on the table." Negi put down the cards and gritted his teeth, what the fuck had he been thinking! All those money… he had lost them because he thought with his dick! It was then that he heard Kotaro start to madly laugh again and instinctively looked up. His eyes widened when he saw what was lying on the table in front of Albireo. A ten, queen, king and ace, all hearts, however the last card was a three of diamonds. Albireo had been one card away from the best combination there was, but now he had nothing. Negi had won, and he had done it with the worst combination there was.

"You did it man!" Kotaro slapped Negi's back just as Negi rose from the chair; the result was Negi being thrown over the table and headfirst into the chips. As the chips flew all across the room Albireo was hit with a large about of them, one of them knocking out his cigar. The effeminate man just reached into his suit and took out another cigar which he slowly lit. Blowing out a large cloud of smoke into Negi's face he smiled crookedly.

"As Kotaro-san said," He said calmly, "You won. And as promised, for twelve hours the finest courtesan in Tokyo is yours." Albireo looked at the clock. "Six o'clock. My car is outside, shall we?" he said as Negi got off the table.

"Wh-what, you mean now?" He asked the pimp in front of him who nodded.

"Sakura is free tonight," Albireo asked with an amused twinkle in his eyes, "why wait?"

"Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck…" Kotaro, the bum and the thug were all chanting quietly in the background.

"Ehm…." Negi wasn't fucking prepared for this! "Well… uhh… Kotaro can you take care of my chips?" he finished lamely and Albireo rose from the table.

"You got it man!" Kotaro grinned as wide as he could and held both thumbs up, "And don't worry 'bout home, I'll fix that too, just go and fuck your brains out!" He started to quickly gather up the chips and Albireo took his coat and walked out of the room with Negi following him.

Negi's thought were in a jumble, he'd get to screw the best whore in Tokyo, he'd gotten all that money, the drug dealing… Asuna… he was in a state of shock. As they came outside and Negi got a good breath of fresh air his head suddenly cleared and he looked after Albireo. The man was currently taking out a set of car-keys from his pockets. Pushing the button on them an expensive Mercedes further down the street lit up. Negi hurried over to it and was about to get into the back seat when Albireo spoke up.

"I am not petty enough to demand that the man who bested me in cards have to sit in the back seat." The man said, "Get in here," he patted the seat beside him. Negi chose to oblige, marveling at the car as he did so. All white leather seats and an expensive looking stereo. He wondered if the guy really was as much a poser as Kotaro had said. The car rolled off and for a few seconds they were silent. It was Albireo the broke the silence.

"If I'm not too forward Negi-san." He began, wetting his lips, "I noticed that you seemed quite distraught when you put out your second hand. It is not my place to pry, of course, but with a goldmine like Mahora at your disposal I cannot see why those amounts should matter?"

"Well what can I do?" Negi asked the man, "I can only sell that much."

"True." Albireo admitted, "No matter how skilled, a man can only do that much. But I must ask: are there no people there you believe could work under you? I sometimes have students as clients and without exception they are impressionable to an almost ridiculous degree."

"And if I try to build up my own power-base it's gonna give me a one-roomer six feet under." Negi deadpanned.

"How so?" Albireo glanced at him, "Fate-sama did offer you all of Mahora, didn't he? From what I've understood he gave you his blessing to conduct your business in whatever way you deemed fit."

"Eh… Newsflash:" Negi said, "anyone trying to grab more power than what Fate allows them is dead meat."

"Did he ever forbid you from expanding?" Albireo said directly.

"Well… no, but…" Negi was interrupted yet again.

"If you feel uncertain about it, bring it up with him." The man offered, "That way you can be on the safe side. It does seem a little stupid to sell your goods in some alley when you could be working all of Mahora, don't you agree?"

Now Negi's was quiet. He had gotten a sinking feeling in his gut. The man was right… Fate's words that time at the restaurant were clear in his head…

_"Mahora is yours." _

Holy shit… he hadn't just been offered a chance to pawn weed. He had been given all of Mahora! Negi groaned at himself and hid his face in his hands. How stupid could he get! His head begun to swim as he realized how much more money he could have made.

"It is not too late yet." Albireo seemed to have read his thoughts, "summer is coming, and it is now that your trade will flourish. With the aid of your comrade I believe you could take over most of Mahora quite quickly."

"Wait a sec here." Negi's eyes narrowed, "What do you get out of this?" He looked at Albireo who's eyed got that gleam again, but this time it was an appreciative gleam.

"I do have something in mind," he admitted, "But perhaps we should wait a little with addressing that matter. Rest assured, however, that my intentions are a mutually beneficial agreement, nothing else."

The rest of the journey proceeded in relative silence and it was first when they had reached their destination that Albireo spoke up again, "Ah, here we are." He said as he stopped the car outside a large hotel. As he got out of the car a man came out and took the car-keys. This was a hotel fancy enough to have guys who parked for you… "Let's go then." Albireo sashayed up the stairs with Negi in tow.

"Where the hell are you hiding a whore-house here?" He muttered to himself. Albireo looked back at him with a wry smile.

"Why hide?" He offered as explanation. "Here we are the kings Negi-san. You see… I own this hotel, thereby there is no need for us to hide. Guest-lists can be doctored," He continued "Security footage replaced. With the aid of well paid professionals and enough money…" He pushed open one of the large doors, "A man can be god."

Negi entered and couldn't help but stare. The place nearly blinded him. He, used to murky pubs and seedy back alleys, was overwhelmed by the glow of white marble and large lights high above. He immediately realized that no matter how fancy he had thought himself was he was even more out of place here than he had ever been back when he wore those old and worn clothes.

Still, what really caught his eyes was the bar, a large mahogany bar in the left end of the hotel which made a sharp contrast to the bright lobby and almost seeded to suck you in. Negi realized that he had found where the who… nope… whores wasn't the right words. Where the "Courtesans" were. Behind the bar and scattered amongst the chairs around it were some of the most drop-dead fucking gorgeous women he had ever seen.

Several of them were obviously busy entertaining clients judging from the expressions of the men that sat or stood beside them. Blatantly, without any care at all, the girls were fondling, kissing, even making out with them. Negi's experience with the skulking and hiding at Mahora made him even more stunned by what he saw.

"Welcome to heaven." Albireo whispered in Negi's ear, "Enjoy your stay."

"Holy…" Negi was in a daze. He looked at Albireo, who grinned at his expression before reaching out and shutting his jaw.

"If you would please follow me then." He made a gesture towards the elevators, "I believe we have business to discuss." Still in a daze, Negi followed him into the elevator. As the doors closed Negi noticed that Albireo pulled out a key from his coat and put it into a keyhole on the touch pad. As he turned it the elevator started to move upwards. Negi looked up on the display that showed the floor number. The elevator went higher and higher until it had passed the twelfth floor, which also was the top floor.

"What the hell?" Negi asked but was stopped when the elevator slowed down and came to a halt. The doors opened and Negi stared. "Oh shit…"

Inside was a penthouse, one so luxurious that it made the lobby look Spartan. Negi's first thought when he saw it was that he must have ended up in some Arabic harem. Large red silk curtains, giant pillows on the floor, Persian rugs, it was unreal. But what caught his eyes the most was the woman resting in one of the large armchairs.

He saw a goddess. Normally he wouldn't use those words but they were dead right with her. Blonde hair, slightly tanned skin, voluptuous body. A black satin dress that did a better job accenting her figure then concealing it and full lips that were curled in a slight smile. As Albireo and Negi entered, the latter staring at the woman, her eyes opened. Two large emerald eyes, glittering, looked at them.

"Is this the young boy you mentioned, honorable husband?" She asked with a deep voice, sensual and alluring, which had a mocking tone to it as the last two words were spoken.

"That it is; beloved wife." Albireo bowed to the woman before turning back to Negi. "Negi-san, Allow me to introduce my beautiful wife, Evangeline McDowell."

"It's… an honor…" Negi managed to croak as he bowed, trying not to let his disappointment show. Apparently this wasn't Sakura. Apparently his efforts were futile for Evangeline started to laugh softly.

"Don't have that look on your face boya." She said as she slowly rose to a sitting position in the armchair, her movements cat-like and graceful. "I assure you that Sakura will not disappoint you."

"Okay…" Negi looked back at Albireo. How could that woman know that? Was the man wired or something? Albireo only smiled at him.

"Please, take off your jacket and have a seat." He said as he took off his clothes, pointing at a rack nearby. Negi quickly slunk out of the jacket and hung it up before he sat down in the chair beside Evangeline. He noticed that Albireo was looking for something in the kitchen and soon saw the man coming out with some glasses and a bottle of whiskey, the brand being one Negi had seen before, one he never had afforded. "Would you care for something strong?" He indicated the bottle.

"Yeah sure." Negi said, having regained some of his composure. Besides, he liked whiskey. Albireo poured us some glasses and handed one to Negi and another to his wife.

"Kanpai then." He said and they all took a swig of the whiskey. Negi's eyes widened when he felt the taste of it, this was good stuff, really good stuff. However he started to get antsy.

"Perhaps it's time for us to go straight for business then." Evangeline suddenly said, "I have a feeling you'd rather run off into the other section as soon as possible and my husband's tendency to drag out on things would annoy us both."

"Yeah," Negi remembered the words in the car, "You said you gave me that tip since you wanted something from me, what?"

"Forgive me but first I think I need to do a short summary of things." Albireo said, "Don't fret, I'll be quick." He added upon seeing Evangeline's face, "First and foremost: why did Fate-sama put you at Mahora? I believe that he was pretty insistent on it, was he not?"

"Yeah he was." Negi said, "But I'm not looking a gift horse in the mouth."

"As well you shouldn't, still… why?" Albireo continued, "The answer is that Tokyo is on the verge of a power shift of epic proportions. As the aged patriarch of the Yukihiro group is lying on his deathbed people are scrambling to grab hold of whatever power they can. It's nothing that concerns you; really, the struggle is much higher up than simple assaults in the streets. Still… Fate put a gold-mine like Mahora in the hand of an inexperienced amateur. What was he up to?" Albireo swirled the contents in his glass.

"He put out a Trojan horse." He answered his own question, "Fate's agents are well known and if he placed his best there they would quickly be dead as other groups would attempt to move in to stake a claim there. Better then to put out an enthusiastic newcomer without any real skill but with an immense talent. With you there the benefits of taking over would be outweighed by the consequences. Mahora still needs a lot of work, as it is it would take months to set up a good operation there and Fate would stop whomever who tried to enter. By putting you there and leave you to do whatever you want, he's not risking any agents but still holding Mahora in his hands. People know he has an interest there but not who is working for him."

"So what you're saying…" Negi's eyes were wide.

"Is that Fate is waiting for the day you expand and make Mahora his area completely." Albireo grinned.

"And now… say that I do this… you'll support me, won't you?" The couple's smile was all the answer he needed. "Then I'll repay you, in what?"

"Recruits." Evangeline said, "Amongst the girls of Tokyo there are always those who have nothing left, who'd rather die than live on. With you as the top man there we'd offer you a hefty sum for keeping an eye out for these girls, pure girls. You see, teenagers are always in high demand," Evangeline smiled at him with a confident look on her face, "It's not like crack-whores are everybody's favorite." Negi had tensed at what she said but Albireo calmed him.

"It is not like we ask you to kidnap them," The effeminate man smiled, "Merely point the girls that need to escape in our direction. Also… I do believe you refer to the students of Mahora as the "Mahora-cunts", Kotaro-san told me. Is there any need to stop them from reaping what they sow? We'll pay, at the very least, two million Yen per girl."

Negi had a lump in his throat now, they sounded like they wanted him to herd cattle. But still… these guys were on Fate's level, the money this could bring in. not to mention his getting to the top in Mahora. But still, they wanted him to help them trading in humans. Then again, with that money there would be no limit of what he could give Asuna. She could grow up to become like Evangeline if she wanted. Become a queen amongst men. He looked down into his glass and saw his reflection of the whiskey. In the end there wasn't really a choice; Asuna was an angel, a princess that deserved everything. The fuckers that said money didn't make you happy were wrong. He had already committed himself to doing whatever he could for her.

"Wasn't there some roman dude who said something about throwing a dice?" he suddenly asked. He vaguely remembered something he felt would be fitting for this moment.

"Alea iacta est" Albireo said, "The die has been cast. Those were words of Gaius Julius as he took his army across the river Rubicon and marched towards Rome to displace the corrupt senate and install himself as emperor of the Roman Empire. He later on became named Julius Caesar and is widely considered the greatest emperor the Roman Empire had. It's a fine analogy you have chosen Negi-san." The effeminate man smiled again. "A toast, then?" He asked, "To our alliance?"

"Kanpai." Negi raised his glass and emptied it. Albireo and Evangeline said it too and the glasses were emptied. Negi looked around as he put down the glass and Evangeline noticed his gaze.

"Don't worry boya." She chuckled, "You will have your allotted twelve hours. We don't go back on our deals." Evangeline raised one arm and snapped her fingers, as if calling for someone. A side door opened behind Negi who looked back, what he saw made his heart skip a beat.

The girl he now saw had to be Sakura, if nothing else her thin yukata, white with cherry blossoms on, showed it. The material was thin enough to hint her skin and give him a good estimate of her beautiful breasts. When he looked higher up he saw a beautiful, heart-shaped face, with two deep green eyes, almost black, that seemed to look into his soul. A small nose rested just above a set out full, kissable lips and the whole face was framed in by long raven-black hair. The short girl that now looked at him with a sultry look in her eyes made his mouth dry up.

"You called, mistress?" Her quiet and seductive voice sent shivers down his spine, suddenly he understood about that waiting list. The girl was somehow more than just gorgeous. He realized he was trembling.

"Sakura-chan, this is your client for the next twelve hours." Albireo said as he leaned backwards, a filled glass in his hand, "Give him whatever he wants."

"As you command master." She girl bowed submissively to Albireo before she turned to Negi, "Please come with me." She said, making a gesture towards the door she had entered from. Negi blinked before he took the bottle and poured up half a glass of whiskey which he drained in one swoop.

"Let's do this." He said to himself as he got up and walked off, Sakura following him. Albireo and Evangeline both had an amused expression on their faces as the door shut.

"You really found a prime hatchling Fate…" Albireo mused, "But shame on you to try to make him keep Mahora yours only." He took a sip of his whiskey. "Sharing is caring after all."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

WARNING: this chapter contains drug use, violent sexual acts and several trails of thought that you WILL find abhorrent if you've got anything good in you.

* * *

Sakura's smooth lips softly landed on his neck, sending a shiver through Negi and the petite girl's hands undressed him. When Negi had entered the room he had been oddly calm. He didn't feel any tension at all despite the legendary cherry-blossom of Harajuku being his. He had sat down on the bed and as he expected Sakura had begun to undress him. Sakura pulled back to get fresh air and Negi's eyes met hers. As his t-shirt was pulled off he saw that her very eyes were submissive but still hungry, lust-filled. Unlike the whores he had had before this girl wanted him, her dark eyes were begging for him. The rush when he realized that made him smile crookedly. Tonight he would finally be god!

"Slower," Negi commanded, enjoying how he had just given an order instead of taking one. He had twelve hours and he was getting every minute's worth of it, one way or another. As she begun to unbutton his jeans, slowly and sensually, Negi saw what was lying on the bedside-table. Drugs, a whole lot of them. "Whatever I want, huh?" he muttered to himself and Sakura looked up at him, waiting for his commands. He watched intensely as she motioned to take her kimono off, waiting with those same eyes for permission. The rush, the feeling power overwhelmed him and he translated it as a curt nod for her to continue.

"Beer?" she asked, offering a hand to the cabinet "or maybe…" Negi cut her off with a single gesture.

"Anything stronger?" he motioned to a small box he assumed had weed inside. A joint would be great now, really.

"Coke it is sir." She walked with a grace that made her ass wiggle at all times over to the small box and came back over and opened it for him, revealing that coke inside. "Shall I cut it for you?"

Negi hesitated for a second. He had dealt with drugs for months and knew how badly the weaklings he sold it to got fucked. But when he met Sakura's submissive eyes the hesitation was drained away. He was king here, he was the fucking king! Everything he wanted was his, women, booze, even the most expensive fucking drug in the world was his! In the end he nodded.

He watched her as she made even a simple thing like making lines of coke look unbelievably sexy. She even used a platinum card to draw his first ever line in his life and calmly produced a straw-like thing he swore looked to be solid gold. She held it up to him in a way that made the feeling of power flare up again. He snatched the straw from her and snorted the coke immediately. The rush overwhelmed him, sudden and unstoppable the tide flashed through him and in one second he had become god. He looked back at Sakura and noticed her hands. They were stroking her hair, a gesture he knew from the girls who bought coke from him, she wanted it, badly.

"Was it satisfactory master?" She asked with a husky tone, her eyes showing her longing for the rush, "I got it this morning." Negi smiled wickedly as he slowly extended the gold straw to her.

"You want a line?" he asked, smirking at how easy she nodded. The fact he could hold it from her and make her beg, suck him off, do whatever he wanted, then refuse it anyway was an unbelievable power rush. "Take one you too then, then prepare to work." He whispered, indicating his jeans "You left something unfinished."

Negi watched her snort the line with practiced ease, her eyes never left his as per her professionalism. She was so easy to watch, her breast heaved with ecstasy, skin smoother than silk, glowed like milk. She was better than any cheap porn movie. And she was all his… Sakura's hands continued to take off his pants and his underwear soon followed, revealing his excited member.

Negi leaned back on the bed and pointed to his member when she was done. "You snorted now you can suck as well." Sakura took a second to show her approval, the first sign of any kind of mind of her own before enveloping it in one hot shot. Negi jumped back, not entirely used to the feeling. Damn it felt good, like taking a hot bath, except a tongue was wrapping around the crown and gently following the path of the vein that provided the blood.

She followed each lick back and forth, slowly soaking his wet flesh perfectly as if she was cleaning her mate. She never stopped doing her duty, alternating patterns, never letting her master for the evening become bored or used to the sensation. Sakura eventually started taking it deep throat. That caused Negi to feel the burn, the control of his waning as he mercilessly pounded her tonsils into submission. Never feeling the urge to stop, the only condition of her actions was the slight dribble from her mouth. She had a mouth like a vacuum.

"Master," Sakura asked, just before his cock was free from her void of a mouth, "Is there anything special you want? Master Albireo and mistress Evangeline said you were given the full service."

Negi, panting slightly from the most intense pleasure he had ever felt, thanked the gods he had won a stupid card game and let the first deviant thought he had be spoken. "Play with yourself." He really wanted something to boast to Kotaro about in the morning plus it sort of humiliated her, treated her like a slave.

Sakura again showed her independent mind. The knowing smile coupled with how easy she obeyed the command gave Negi the confidence that she would never turn down a request. He could ask her to let him beat her with a riding crop and she would do it. Sakura lay down on the bed, keeping her legs crossed to give him a show. She was teasing but only slightly. She knew Negi expected her to be a servant, an instrument to sate his lusts.

Negi trotted over, enjoying how his third appendage was impeding his walk and forcefully spread her legs to drink in the first proper look at her sex. He stroked it, admiring the shiver he made when he came into contact with the slick folds and coating his fingers in a liberal amount he soaked the small v shape of pubic hair, intertwining his digits one at a time to maximize his explorations. Sakura, the cherry blossom, was truly a work of art. This work of art would soon be his. The intoxicating sensation of power, the cocaine and the lust finally made it all snap when she twisted, making his fingers slip out of her. How dare she fucking tease? She was a fucking servant, a vassal to his whims and desires. She had no right to even think she could hide anything from him

Without any warning Negi pulled both of her legs forward and rammed his entire length inside her, pounding her straight from the go, roughly pinching her clit with one hand and maintaining the thrusts with a grab at her boobs, holding the nipple harshly to maximize the milking of both pain and pleasure from the girl as he savored the sensation of finally dominating her. He was the fucking king tonight!

"You like that bitch?" Negi sneered, "You want me," Negi trusted harder, "To make you scream." All he was getting in return was a bug eyed look. The girl was simply amazed for some reason, almost looking down on someone who genuinely held her as what she was. It was almost reverence that Negi understood her role. "Like being smacked around?" Negi abandoned his position, turned her around and took her roughly by the hair in a doggy style. "Take it like the whore you are."

Negi's was high on everything now, the cocaine, the power, the lust, he was a fucking god as he pounded into her, practically tilting her supple neck almost 180 degrees in a reflection of how ferocious his power was. She knew he was venting and panted, taking the punishment willingly, used to, it seemed, having her neck unnaturally held up high, almost as if she was supposed to be facing him even when he had her back to him. "Do you like me doing that?" he hissed into her ear. "You like that you filthy whore?"

"Y-yes master!" She was panting; her heaving bosom were rising and dropping so quickly it was impossible to tell when she was breathing in or out. She was almost done, Negi could sense the raven haired girl's vaginal muscles clamping down on his dick, determined to milk him dry. She was screaming, her sweaty body and hoarse voice told him he was doing his job properly but he would not come yet. She would be the first, his pride wouldn't allow him to fall victim to weakness until she was spent and merely waiting for her lord and master to finish his fun, using her like she was a mere nobody, a thing that had a hole he used to derive some relief from her.

In the end Sakura's lips parted again, letting out a loud moan as the girl's lithe body shook from the dark pleasure Negi's savage thrusts gave her. Sakura came like a freight train, trashing in his grip as she was flooded by the sensations. Tremors rippled every centimeter of her flesh, seizure-like movements producing the wanted results. She was broken for at least until he was satisfied. She was as good as he was promised and Negi swore to use her again and again until his time was finished.

Negi continued pounding the limp girl, her front offered no resistance as she was dragged through the mattress like a lawnmower until he finally came inside her, invigorating spurts and spasms followed one by amazing another until he was spent ten seconds later before landing on her back and caressing her breasts once more.

"Want another line?" he suddenly whispered into her ear. Sakura's dull eyes lighting up at this. Negi chuckled darkly as he reached for the cocaine; the night was far from over. Nor was his desires fully sated, there was no way he'd let this end now.

* * *

_The following morning_

The sun rose lazily above Tokyo and heralded the new day as the streets begun to be filled by people, all of them heading to work. In the tall building that housed Albireo's hotel, however, Negi was currently sitting on the bedside, a sheet covering his privates, and looked at the clock. It showed eight o'clock precisely. The door suddenly slammed open and the smug face of Albireo suddenly showed in the doorway. When saw Negi being both awake and aware, however, he stopped dead in his tracks.

"You're that eager to throw me out?" Negi asked with a dark smile. "Not a very good way to treat your partner."

"I'm… surprised." Albireo said after a while, "I did not expect you to be this lively." Negi snorted.

"I'm not a fat businessman who only trains by stuffing food into his mouth." He said, "She was the one to give up first." He motioned backwards on the bed and Albireo, without any shame, stepped inside the bedroom and looked. What he saw made his eyes widen.

On the bed his finest prostitute, the girl that was his ace in the deck, lay, nearly unconscious. Her hair was pointing in all directions, sweat and other things having made it stiffen, tufts of hair was laying all around her, a testimony to Negi's savage treatment of her. Her entire body was drenched in sweat, bite marks and hickeys all over her, some of the former actually bleeding. Her ass cheeks were blazing red and a stream of semen was running from her womanhood, spilling into a large pool under it. Her eyes were glazed over and her mouth open, drool running from it. A dull moan escaped from her lips.

"Cherry blossoms are fragile I suppose, well then, bye bye Sakura-chan." Negi said as he patted her ass and got up and walked off to the shower, "and don't sweat it, I'm gonna be outta here as soon as I had a shower." Without waiting for a reply he took up his clothes and entered the bathroom where he jumped into the shower. The water felt kinda strange; even if he didn't show it he had that "pins-and-needles" feeling all over himself. After he was done he wiped himself and put his clothes on, no need to stay here longer than needed.

However exiting the bathroom he noticed that Evangeline had entered the bedroom too. The blonde woman was currently leaning over Sakura with a dazed expression on her face. Sakura was quietly moaning something to her mistress and after a while Evangeline rose and looked at Negi, who was just about to leave. As he looked back on the couple he noticed that Evangeline looked torn between anger and amazement and Albireo seemed to fight to stifle a giggle.

"What?" Negi asked, his back to them at the open door, "I did say goodbye didn't I?" without waiting for a reply he left. The couple stood still and looked at the door, Albireo eventually looking at his wife.

"When was the last time Sakura-chan was reduced to moaning after more even after twelve hours?" He asked his wife with a voice filled with mirth before her glare immediately silenced him.

"I can't remember, because it has never happened," Eva replied, a little breathless at the tale spun. "She's exhausted." She said the final word like it was blasphemous. In the end she sighed, "We'll have to take her off duty for a pair of weeks, she can't even entertain a virgin now."

Albireo nodded and smiled again, this would be a very interesting partnership.

* * *

Negi had, no matter how you looked at it, all the right in the world to be exhausted. When he got home he immediately put his sights on the bed, rest the only thing on his mind. His body screamed after sleep; however that was not to be. Halfway to the bedroom Kotaro came barreling out of nowhere and grabbed hold of him. Negi yelped as he was spun around.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" His friend yelled as he steered Negi into the kitchen and pushed down on a chair. "The Mack is back! Eat," Kotaro said and Negi realized that in front of him a large box of take-out food stood, "Fucking for twelve hours straight' drains ya. You need food." Negi's stomach suddenly began to growl loudly and Negi dug in, hungry like hell. Kotaro patiently looked at his friend as he wolfed down the food with a smirk on his face. The food was gone in only a few minutes and Negi leaned backwards, taking a mouthful of water, when he was done.

"Welcome back t' humanity." Kotaro said, "Now: details." He leaned forwards with an eager expression on his face. "What's she like? How good is she at bj?" Negi looked tiredly at Kotaro, who looked like a child at Christmas. He chuckled and opened his mouth.

"Well… she's a screamer." He said, "If you do it the right way she'll come like a fucking freight train. I didn't know such a small girl could scream that loudly."

"Uh huh." Kotaro nodded, listening in rapture.

"And she's a coke-fiend." Negi continued, "Give her coke and she can always do it another time. Not to mention I think she's a nymph, after twelve hours she was still moaning for more."

"Any more?" Kotaro was overjoyed.

"You know what?" Negi told his friend eventually, "You'll just have to bang her yourself. I ain't a fucking storyteller."

"Oh come on man!" Kotaro protested with an anguished expression on his face, "You know I ain't even allowed t' talk to her!" He held up his hands in a begging motion, "Please!"

"Then what shall I tell you?" Negi asked, smirking, again feeling the sensation of being in control, he had never felt it this strongly before this night, "What about how I made her scream from both pain and pleasure? About how her body shivers after a dozen orgasms? The way the coke made her bloom up again? The way she desperately wanted more even when she was too tired to move? How her blood tasted when I bit too deep and she only moaned even louder?" The look on Kotaro's face after every sentence was an awesome reward.

"Oh man!" Kotaro looked at him with a worshiping look on his face. "Fucking god I wish that I could get a shot at her. Did ya have her dress up as a Mahora school girl?"

"Fuck no!" Negi looked appalled at the idea "I see enough of that shit when I work there, that dress would only make me want to beat her up."

"Okay… what about a nurse? Catgirl?" Kotaro continued.

"What's with you and costumes." Negi asked, "And hey, if you want to shag her let's get to a position where we can do that." Negi said, making Kotaro fall silent. His raven-haired friend got a confused look on his face.

"Whaddya mean?" He asked.

"Fate told me to sell drugs at Mahora, right?" Negi began, taking another mouthful of water before looking at the clock, today was Wednesday and Asuna would quit school first at three so they had time. Kotaro nodded.

"Yeah, what are you plannin'?" He asked.

"If I'm right the only ones selling drugs at Mahora are small timers nowadays, right?" Negi continued. "From what I've heard it's cause nobody knows I'm Fate's man. That's why everybody knows Fate has Mahora in his hands but nobody knows how. That's why only small timers are there."

"Yeah, Mahora's in an uneasy balance at th' moment," Kotaro said, "As is all o' Tokyo really. What are you plannin'?" His friend repeated

"Let's make Mahora ours completely." Negi said, "I figure that if we gather up the rest of the small-timers and tell them that if they want to live on they'll work for me, and by extension Fate, we'll have it in out grip. If we do it good Fate can't make a stink about it before it's over and since its more drugs for him to sell and he really gets all of Mahora as his he'll give it a rest. We'll get more money and the dealers under us can get protection. I've seen some of the other dealers, they don't know jack. Intimidating them will be a cakewalk."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, easy man." Kotaro shook his hands, motioning for Negi to stop. "How's two guys gonna intimidate twenty? That's about how many dealers there are on th' campus. At least a few of them will be packin' guns and we ain't got nothing like that, it's not like we can ask Fate for guns." He leaned in towards his friend, "I shoulda told you this earlier but all of Tokyo's havin' th' jitters. The main man, Fate's boss, is about t' die an' everyone an' his grandma's lookin' t' become th' next head. If Fate's gonna make any sudden moves now it's gonna be chaos. All of Tokyo's balancin' on a fuckin' knife's edge."

"Then we do it quickly," Negi said, "It's gonna be over before it started. "Wham, bam, I'm the man."

"Ain't you listenin' t' me!" Kotaro hissed and slammed his hand into the table, "You ain' got no resources for that shit."

"Yes I do." Negi said as he leaned forwards. "Albireo's offering me full support." Kotaro froze.

"You made a deal with him?" Kotaro rose from the table. "Are you outta your fuckin' mind!" He yelled, "You gonna start slave-tradin' with that snake!"

"Murderers shouldn't point fingers." Negi said, "You butchered two guys like pigs but recruitment for Albireo's brothel makes you squeal? Please." Negi leaned backwards and looked up at the roof. In truth, he was amazed with himself, what was he saying? He was acting like Fate… like the king of Tokyo's drugs. _"I'm the fucking king." _ He remembered himself thinking that over and over last night. That feeling… that feeling of being the master… he wanted it again.

"Besides…" he added eventually, "Asuna's a princess, if I want to give her what she deserves I'm gonna have to become king." He looked back at his friend, "Who matters most to you?" He asked Kotaro, who now was standing looking out of the window, "The Mahora cunts or Asuna? All Albireo wanted me to do is to point the girls who want to run away in his direction. We're not gonna have to kidnap people. Power, money, a shot at Sakura, all Asuna can ever want. You don't think it's worth it? I do." He fell silent and begun to massage his temples.

"Who are you an' what have you done t' Negi." Kotaro eventually asked, "This ain't you man."

"What's supposed to be me then?" Negi asked, "A pussy who hesitates before every step? I'm tired Kotaro, I'm tired of skulking in alleys and dealing with those pathetic losers. No more! I'm meant for more that just that, isn't that why Fate was insisting on me being the one to work there? You got a problem with grabbing for more when it's right in front of you?"

"Well, no but…" Kotaro was interrupted again.

"Damn it Kotaro!" Negi suddenly yelled and slammed his hand into the table, "Mahora is a fucking gold mine and you know it! Do you really expect me to keep making small change when I can have ten times as much! I swore I would do anything for Asuna and I can make her someone who has everything! If you're too much chicken to let me do that, then fuck off!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Kotaro said again with his hands raised, "I ain't meanin' it like that. Cool it man, cool it. It's just, do you know what you're doin'? You doin' this will make you a bigger target than ever."

"Wasn't Tokyo balancing already?" Negi asked, "The big ones can't declare war on me since I'm with Fate, right, and between you and me the small timers won't be a problem." Negi leaned forwards. "Power belongs to those who can seize it, why not show that we deserve it? Come on Kotaro!" He nearly pleaded, "Can't you see what we can get!" Negi was fired up now; he stood up and looked at his old friend with an open expression on his face. He needed Kotaro with him on this. In the end his friend turned back to him with a smirk.

"I'm on"

* * *

Later that day Negi had, by combining a few hours of sleep with a big mug if coffee, managed to get much more lively and when the clock approached three he decided to do something he rarely had the chance to do before. They were playing a fighting game on the new gaming console when the end of Asuna's school-day approached and Kotaro looked up at his friend.

"You wanna take Asuna today?" He asked rhetorically, knowing the answer, Negi nodded immediately and put away the controller. These things were a rarity for him, even nowadays, and he wanted to savor every second of it. He hurried down the stairs wondering how Asuna's day had been. Even now, after all that had happened, he still loved these things more than anything else. Getting into the car Kotaro had borrowed from Fate, though Negi suspected he had been given it, he drove off thinking about what would happen soon.

However in the end he shook his head and decided to think of that later on. For now, he'd be Asuna' cool big brother. As the sun was shining brightly it was fully justified to put on his sunglasses. And judging from the heat he could motivate taking off his jacket too. Asuna's school was right next to a junior high school and the parking lot was by the latter. As he parked the car he took one last look in the rear-view mirror and stepped outside. School was over for today and the students were flooding the school-yard.

The concept of physical appeal was something that Negi, outside sex, hadn't given a shit about before. Even if he had very good looks he had been too busy surviving to think of that stuff. It was also there that a large part of his hate for the Mahora girls had taken root; physical appearance had been all they had cared about. But when the money had started to roll in he had suddenly realized that, seeing how important it was to most people, he'd be much more successful if he took advantage of the fact that he looked good. He had also realized that he LOVED to tease. The girls here, ditzy teenagers with their head in the clouds, were so easy to make drool that it was a joke.

Walking off, past the junior high and towards the elementary school, he looked around himself. Immediately upon his exit from the car most of the girls in the area seemed to have zoned in on him in the matter of seconds. With his jacket slung over his shoulder and the sunglasses hiding his eyes he was sexiness incarnate to them and he loved every second of it. A group of girls standing near the school wall caught his attention. They were junior-high and looked to be third-grade. They were, for lack of better word, delicious. He lowered his sunglasses to look at them, making the girls swoon in the process, one of them looked like she was about to faint.

"Yes…" he thought, _"Really delicious." _They were not only lookers but they were also young, healthy and pure. If they had family problems he could snatch them up and send them towards Al in a second, two million each, he smiled at the thought and immediately saw how the girls blushed. Too easy… he might as well call them paychecks from now on. All he would have to do was to cash them in.

Nah… he decided as he put the sunglasses back on, he'd stay away from them. First because this wasn't his area anyway, he'd probably piss someone high up off if he started recruiting here. Second was that these girls were just as bad off as he had been. They might be someone else's Asuna and he reserved his hatred for the Mahora cunts. Third was that he was here to pick up Asuna, not look for potential whores.

A part of him was amazed by how easy everything was for him now. He was looking at young girls like they were potential prostitutes; he planned to overtake all of Mahora's drug-dealing operations by force. The night with Sakura had really changed him it seemed. It was like a door had opened in him, he had seen what awaited him at this road's end and he wanted it. He wanted it no matter what he'd have to do. That high life, for him and Asuna, he WOULD have it no matter what. He suddenly realized that he was clenching his jaw and relaxed, it wouldn't do to look like a thundercloud around Asuna.

Instead he walked up to the building he knew Asuna's classroom was in and waited outside it. Leaning against the wall he took out a cigarette from the jacket, one of the new vices he had gotten lately, and lit it up. As the kids began to leave this school too Negi was given more adoring stares from the girls. For some reason he begun to take a good look at the girls here too. Even younger, undeveloped, childishly pure… he didn't doubt that many would pay much for them too…

Then he saw Asuna and dropped his thoughts together with the cigarette and walked off towards her. He smiled as the little girl suddenly noticed him; he really must look different like this because she hesitated for a second before she ran off towards him.

"Niisan!" She yelled happily; he extended his arms and she leapt into them, squealing as he rose and threw her into the air.

"Hey hime!" He laughed, "I've missed you." He made a twirl around with Asuna in his arms; feeling her there was better than anything. He loved hugging her; it was like a drug to him, a drug without any side-effects that gave him a high of happiness. He stopped and let her lean back a little so they could look at each other. "How was the day?" He asked her the usual question and, as he carried her towards the car, listened to her description of her day.

* * *

_A few days later_

Negi had decided to, instead of taking Asuna directly home from school, take her to one of the city parks. Said park was one of Asuna's favorite spots thanks to the ponds there. Several large ponds filled with carps were the main attraction of the garden and Asuna loved them, she could watch them for hours and still be amazed by anything they did. Negi had this time brought some old bread along to feed the carps with.

By the largest pond there was a series of stone benches by the water and it was there that Negi and Asuna now sat, throwing breadcrumbs into the water. Asuna was watching the water with wide-eyed fascination and every time a breadcrumb disappeared she squealed.

"It seems like they are hungry today," Negi said as he threw out a few crumbs into the water, watching them disappear one after one as the carps swallowed them quickly, "It's probably been a while since someone fed them."

"Yes…" Asuna said, "But now we are here and can give them food." She concluded happily.

"Don't worry Asuna-chan." He smiled and ruffled her hair, ignoring her protest "there are people that will feed them later on, they were probably just a little late today. This is more like candy for them."

"Niisan, look!" the little girl suddenly said and pointed towards one of the carps, this one was a big fish, nearly fifty percent bigger then the others. Negi raised his eyebrows when he saw it. That was really a big one.

"Wow." He eventually said, "That must be the fish king…" he told her.

"It would be," A soft voice said behind them, Negi tensed when he heard it, "If fishes had a monarchy." Negi turned around and gritted his teeth when he saw Albireo and Evangeline stand right behind them, Albireo in his usual garish clothes and Evangeline in a black skirt and white top. Albireo nodded in his direction before turning to Asuna, his smile widening. "I suppose you are Asuna?" He asked, "I've been looking forward to meeting you, hime-chan. I am Albireo, one of your niisan's friends, and this is my wife Evangeline." He indicated Evangeline who smiled at the girl.

Asuna just looked at him, her brow furrowed in that way she always furrowed it when she was thinking. Eventually she spoke up.

"Are you a clown?" She asked, pointing at Albireo's colorful attire.

The reactions to this were varied, Albireo suddenly froze and his smile became _very_ forced, a twitch developing in the left corner of his mouth and he looked like he was about to pop a vein. Evangeline burst out into laughter and clutched her stomach, nearly falling to the ground as the laughter overwhelmed her. Negi, though, suddenly felt like his heart froze to ice and he hurriedly grabbed Asuna.

"Asuna-chan!" He yelped, near panic at the realization that Asuna had just insulted one of the most dangerous people in Tokyo. "You can't ask people questions like that!" He hunched down and turned her towards him, "That's one of the rudest things you can say!"

"But Negi-san?" Evangeline said as she had regained some composure, "Didn't you know? Albireo IS a clown;" The voluptuous blonde came up to her husband's side and patted him on the shoulder before being overwhelmed by another attack of laughing. "He's the… biggest clown in… Tokyo!" She managed to press out between laughs as she had to lean against Albireo for support.

Albireo, who had been still during this entire time eventually laughed too. The man chuckled at the words of Asuna, having been caught utterly off guard by her.

"Out of the mouth of babes…" He said as he shook his head, "Out of the mouth of babes indeed. Although…" He smiled at Asuna before he held up one hand, palm forwards. "voilà!" He suddenly threw his arm out to the side and snapped his fingers, Asuna's full attention being on it in a second. She gasped when he suddenly held a small bouquet of dandelions in his hand. This bouquet he held out towards her with a graceful gesture. "…I consider myself more of a magician, hime-chan." He said as he handed the bouquet of the starry-eyed girl.

"Niisan… Niisan look!" Asuna took the flowers and held them out towards him, utterly awed. Negi chuckled at the whole thing.

"Pretty nice huh, and what do you say then?" He asked her and Asuna quickly bowed to Albireo, thanking him for the flowers. Albireo bowed graciously to her and smiled again. Evangeline, who had managed to calm down, now walked up to Asuna and hunched in front of her.

"Tell me something, hime-chan." The woman greeted her with a smile, "Have you ever learned how to make a wreath out of flowers?" Asuna just shook her head at this; Negi had never known that stuff. "Perhaps I can show you while Albireo borrows your niisan for a second? Is that okay?" She asked and Asuna looked up at Negi.

"It's okay." Negi said, "Perhaps you can make one for me?" He asked and Asuna brightened up at the though. Before Evangeline could brace herself Asuna had grabbed her and pulled her towards a bench where she sat down, Evangeline joining her and stating to show her how to make flower-wreaths. Albireo watched the scene with a small smile on his lips.

"What a pretty child…" He eventually said, "She is a rare treasure indeed."

"Albireo…" Negi said, "You do realize the consequences of touching her, do you?" He asked her, giving the effeminate pimp a cold stare as he took out a cigarette. "Smoke?" He asked, holding out the packet.

"Oh heavens no!" Albireo said, holding his hands up in front of him, "I wouldn't dream of it, I do have some morals. And yes please." He accepted one of the cigarettes and lit it up, "Fire?" He held the lighter towards Negi.

"Good, then we got that clear, and yeah." Negi held out his cigarette and Albireo lit it up. When they both had a cigarette each Albireo spoke up.

"Right, then, about Mahora…" He said softly, looking around, "Do you have a plan at the moment?"

"What about divide and conquer?" Negi asked, "All I need is some guys that can hold a gun and a few guns to use."

"Indeed?" Albireo looked at him, "I usually prefer more delicate ways of doing this but please tell be what you planned."

"Basically, I'm thinking of first assuming command of some on the delinquent gangs there." Negi said, giving a rough outline of what he had been thinking of, "If there's a school there are bored punks who would rather die than study, I can make them work for me in no time. I'll skim the local gangs for real bastards and take them in. In high society guys like that will have fallen out with their family and I can offer them a new family." Negi said paused to take a sip of his cigarette.

"With those guys behind my back and some real guns from you it will be piece of cake." He continued, "The dealers on Mahora are students in need of money for a quick fix, they will bend like nothing. Also, by telling them that I'll give them as much as they can sell and that they can use as much as they want as long as they pay eighty percent, or whatever, of the profits to me I'll make them have advantages with me. Eighty percent of what I make goes directly to Fate, and we're done."

"Simple, direct and effective." Albireo praised him, "All you'll need to do is to make sure they sell."

"That's where the second part of the plan comes in." Negi admitted, he had thought of this for some time now. "I'm probably gonna keep control of the punks afterwards. Hell… I might even put Kotaro with them as the leader, that guy's the incarnation of what those punks want to be."

"An excellent plan." Albireo grinned to himself; soon he'd have a hotline right into Mahora itself, getting new girls would be like picking apples. Not to mention a good relation with Negi himself.

"Yeah… all I need is some guys with guns, care to fix that?"

"I probably can," Albireo said with a thoughtful expression, "Does six men with machine-guns suffice?"

"Are they people you trust?" Negi asked as he looked out across the pond, seeing how the bigger fish was pushing some of the smaller around, seemingly preparing for something.

"I have a few favors to call in with one of the local crime lords, he'll supply the men, and his usual treatment of those who doesn't honor a deal… well… you should probably avoid bone-meal from now on." Albireo admitted, "So it won't be any risk. What you need to be concerned with is yourself, the deal will be dangerous if any of the dealers snap and I'd hate to see you end up with a knife through your gut." Albireo looked around before he handed a small black bag to Negi, "Here's to your safety."

Negi accepted it and looked inside, when he saw what it was he felt strange inside. Inside the bag was a handgun. A metal-gray, gleaming gun with a brown wooden handle lay in the bottom of the bag together with a pair of ammo clips. Negi blinked before he quickly put it away in his bag, stashing it as far down as he could. Looking up from the bag he noticed the pond. The bigger fish seemed to have cornered one of the smaller, now swimming back and forth to block its exits.

"One can never be too sure after all." Albireo said and Negi smirked at him, this probably proved how fucked up his world was. Other guys his age got DVD's and games as gifts. "Give me a call when you are ready," the pimp continued as he threw away the cigarette, "I put the number in the bag."

Negi nodded, not saying anything since he noticed that Asuna was coming. She had finished the wreath and leaped up on the bench, putting the flowery creation on his head with a proud smile.

"There!" She said with vigor, "Now you are cute too." Negi rolled his eyes and took the thing of his head, inspecting it. It wasn't too bad at all, it seemed really sturdy from what he could see and had a lot of different flowers in it. In the end he slapped it on Asuna's head.

"There!" He said, mimicking Asuna "Now you are cuter." He grinned at Asuna, who started to laugh at him, and turned to Albireo and Evangeline, "Well see you around then." He said, indicating that the conversation was over. Albireo bowed flamboyantly to them, taking off his hat and holding it against his chest, while Evangeline only waved against Asuna. The couple left and Negi looked at his little sister, "What do you say we go and get some hamburgers?" He asked her, anticipating her cheer and not being disappointed with her. They left the pond, not noticing how the larger carp had attacked the smaller one, tearing it apart and staining the water with blood.

* * *

Albireo and Evangeline were calmly walking towards the garden exit, discussing the young man they had just left, when someone spoke up in front of them.

"Stop." The voice said, it was low and seething with barely restrained fury. They both stopped immediately, Albireo smirked when he heard the voice. When they looked up they saw a man in his late thirties, with hair that had already greyed and a short salt and pepper stubble on his cheek. A pair of thin glasses was resting on his nose and he wore a grey suit with a deep grey coat over one arm, an arm that pointed in their direction.

"Hello Takamichi-kun." Albireo's soft voice said as he smirked at the man, watching the covered hand intently. He was prepared to bet his life on that there was a gun hidden under the coat. "What a lovely spring day, don't you agree?" He continued in a civil tone. Takamichi's face was just as harsh as before though.

"You stay away from that boy." He hissed at them though clenched teeth, "I won't let you sink your filthy fingers into him, understand!" His eyes were glowing with anger and most others would have been easily intimidated by the man but Albireo didn't say a word and Evangeline only laughed.

"Why?" She asked jovially, "That boy is one of the most intriguing people I've met in years." Takamichi's covered hand was trembling now. "Haven't you seen that too?" She asked him with mock-surprise, "Such a pity for you." She continued.

"Shut up you harlot!" The grizzled man hissed, "I'm not going to let you drag him down into that hell, he deserves better than that." At this Albireo cocked an eyebrow, did the man know anything? However Takamichi continued "Crawl back into your holes and never touch him again, if you do, I'll kill you." The statement was made without any difficulty.

"Crawl back into a hole?" Albireo threw his arms out to the side, "Such an ironic statement you make?" He asked the man and slowly started to walk closer, "Can you afford to take a life in your current existence?" He whispered, "What would happen then, I wonder? You only made it this far by hiding from everything, disappearing and becoming a nobody. But people are still out there you know." Albireo's smile was demonic now.

"They are looking for you." Evangeline said with a no-nonsense voice. "Someone like you can't escape." She smirked, "I wonder how they could take their vengeance? Perhaps they could go after that nurse friend of yours? Perhaps your students? There are many brothels that aren't as scrupulous as ours and many deviants pay well for a chance to rape little girls like them."

"Shut up!" the coat dropped and the gun in Takamichi's hand became visible, he raised it and put it against Albireo's head.

"Well." Albireo was utterly calm even though a gun was being held against his head, "That's also one way to make the news." He said, "And the school-teacher who guns down two innocent people in broad daylight will probably become a pretty big scoop. It would definitively become big enough for them to find out." Albireo slowly raised his cane and pushed the gun out of the way.

"You can't afford it and you know it." He said, smirking, as he looked into Takamichi's eyes. You are squirming in the light; make one move, and people will see it. You have too many things in your past. For some reason you'd rather risk everything you hold dear AND live a life of fear and dissatisfaction instead of protecting what you love and be fulfilled." He and Evangeline both pushed his way past him. Takamichi was now staring into the ground, shaking with frustration. "A tiger won't ever loose its stripes Takamichi-kun." Albireo said as he and his wife walked away.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

* * *

"Forty…eight!" Kotaro groaned as he pushed the barbell upwards, sweat running down his face, "Forty…nine!" he was trembling; he couldn't even take one breath since he'd lose focus then.

"Come on Kotaro…" Negi said from his position above Kotaro's head as he looked down at his friend, "You can do it…. Come on!"

"And… fifty!" Kotaro roared as he pushed the barbell up on last time and managed to get it into its resting position. With an explosive breath he started to pant and felt that he was trembling when he got up from the bench, only just managing to catch the towel Negi threw to him. Wiping his face he chuckled tiredly at the realization that he was too exhausted to even grin.

"The new record is yours," Negi said as he handed him a bottle of water, "Kotaro the power package, who'da thunk it?" He laughed quietly, "Especially when I think of what a runt you used to be."

"Fuck you, beanpole." Kotaro tried to sound pissed but was too tired to do so. Negi was right after all, back when they had lived at the orphanage Negi had been a full head higher than Kotaro, who had been the smallest kid in his age group.

"So you swing that way now?" Negi mocked his best friend, "Sorry but I don't. If you want gay-sex talk to …" Negi only barely avoided the bottle as Kotaro threw it against his head. Kotaro suddenly winced when he realized how stupid that was, the pain blazed in his arm and he grabbed it, eyes opened wide. "…and that's enough training for you for today." Negi concluded, "Hop in the shower and I'll buy lunch." He pointed in the direction of the showers, "You've done enough hulk-style training for today."

"Yeah, yeah." Kotaro got up and grabbed his bag as Negi fished up the bottle from the floor where it had landed. Negi's friend quickly disappeared into the showers and Negi headed outside the gym to wait for him. He looked up at the building, this one too an old and decrepit building. A rusty sign was the only thing that showed that there was a gym inside and in said gym most of the training equipment was either older than the owner or looked almost home-made. Still, Kotaro loved this place. Negi supposed that his friend needed to get rid of his aggressiveness in some way. After a few minutes Kotaro, showered and changed, got out. "Food!" was all he said to Negi as they both headed towards the car.

"Keep your pants on." Negi said as he leaped into the driver's seat, "We're on it. What do you wanna eat?"

"Food!" Kotaro said as he leaned back in the seat and closed his eyes, "I ain't givin' a shit 'bout what it is just it is food."

"Fair dues." Negi shrugged at his friend, the guy had reverted back to the dinosaurs' level of intelligence, best to feed him right now. He reached for the radio and turned it on. The top ten would be on soon he thought. Being greeted by the signature jingle of the top ten he looked back to the road and drove off. However, just when number ten was about to be played the radio channel was suddenly changed by Kotaro.

"What the hell?" Negi looked up at his friend, "Put it back on, I was listening!"

"I'm sittin' shotgun," Kotaro drawled, "I choose music."

"What the fucking…?" Negi didn't know what he was babbling about, "Since when? Put it back on."

"Hey!" Kotaro snapped, "You're th' one drivin' so you can have that fun, I'm sittin' shotgun so I'll do th' music. You ain't gonna hog all th' fun."

"Fine…" Negi sighed, "Shotgun get to choose the music but then the driver get to get pissed."

"Uhh… no?" Kotaro said hesitantly. "That ain't it."

"Yes it is." Negi said, "Just shut up and prepare your order, we're taking ramen today." He nodded in the direction of a small restaurant near the main road as they drove by it. "It's been a while since I ate that." He made a quick turn and parked on the roadside.

The Ramen joint Negi had chosen was basically your average ramen joint. A thick odor of food blanketed the air inside and created a hot and humid air that the old air-conditioning only could partially alleviate. Though the smell that hovered in the air was a good one and they both placed their orders quickly.

As they waited for the food they noticed the TV that hung from the roof and the news on it. It was the usual crap, murders, violence, lost kids, war in other countries, the works. What also was mentioned was some type of new designer drug that had spread in the US. At this Negi looked up at the TV and furrowed his brow, this seemed interesting. To his disappointment, however, the reporter didn't say anything more. Negi looked back to see that his food had come and shrugged, he could look that up elsewhere anyway, for now he'd just eat. He made a mental note about it as he and Kotaro both broke their chop-sticks apart and dug in.

"By the way Kotaro." Negi said as he slurped up some noodles, "I need to do some shooting practice. Where's the best place?" Kotaro looked at him with a raised eyebrow. The look on his face, one eyebrow raised and a beard made up out of noodles, would have been pretty amusing under other circumstances but Negi had gotten that rapacious feeling again and felt a grim sense of ruthless determination in him.

"That came outta nowhere," Kotaro said, "But sure, I can show you th' best place around, I gotta go there an' pick somethin' up myself anyway." He slurped up the noodles and wiped his cheek. "I've been waitin' for months…" Kotaro suddenly stopped when he saw the gleam in Negi's eyes. _"Holy shit…" _He thought to himself when he realized what that glare meant. If looks could kill his ramen would be massacred by now. He returned to his food, deciding to keep his mouth shut. Negi had a "Fate-look" on his face now.

As the door to the gun-shop opened the wizened man behind the counter looked up at the newcomers. When he noticed that one of these was Kotaro he brightened up.

"Ah," He said, "Good afternoon Kotaro-san." He said as he begun to fumble with something behind the counter. "It has finally come in." Kotaro slid up to the desk immediately with an eager look on his face, motioning for Negi to come up too.

"Take a good look at this man." Kotaro said, "This is the real stuff." The old man took up a mid-sized case and snapped up the locks before he opened it with an almost ceremonial gesture.

"Here you go sir." The old man said, "Your own Desert Eagle .50." inside the case on of the most over-sized guns Negi had ever seen lay. Kotaro had an almost worshiping look on his face as he reached into the case and took out the gun. Gleaming in silvery metallic and almost twice the size of the gun Negi had gotten from Albireo, it made Negi wonder if it was a good idea for Kotaro to get this thing.

"Holy fuck…" Kotaro took aim with the gun a couple of times and grinned, the obvious weight of this thing seemingly not bothering him at all. "This is gonna rock." He finally said and turned to the man. "I need some target practice? How much for ten mags an' one hour?" He said before remembering Negi. "Oh and… whatever this guy wants too." He added, pointing back at his friend.

"Do you have your own gun mister…?" The old man let the question hang in the air and Negi responded.

"Negi, and yeah I got one, this one." He reached into his bag and fished up the gun Albireo had given him. He put it on the desk and the man nodded.

"I see," He said, "let me just inspect it a little." Negi shrugged to show his agreement and the man picked the gun up, meticulously inspecting it, his eyebrows were raised when he handed it back. "You have good taste Negi-san. A SIG-Sauer 226 Elite in stainless steel, chambered for 9 millimeter ammunition. Am I perhaps dealing with a Yakuza boss?" He asked with a jovial expression. Upon seeing Negi's glare, however he stopped.

"Well… yes," He coughed, "You can take whatever range you want to try out your guns." He dodged behind the counter and pulled out a pair of ammo-boxes which he put in front of them. Negi took out his wallet and paid for his bullets before he headed into the firing range.

As he put on the ear-muffs and started putting bullets into the ammo clip, remembering what Kotaro had showed him a few months ago, his thoughts went to the takeover. As he put in the final bullet in the clip and raised the gun, vaguely remembering how you were supposed to hold it, he realized that this might take a few weeks. He'd have to soften them up first; no matter how slick he was he couldn't make them really loyal if he just walked in. They needed to be taught fear first.

He pulled the trigger and felt his hands shake from the recoil as the first bullet left the gun and tore into the target. Negi was too far away to see if he hit but he didn't mind. Instead he thought of what he should to. Blood would be shed, it was inevitable, and it would have to be a lot of it: best to be stealthy about it. And what about the other students; perhaps he could use them in some way? The second bullet left the gun as Negi remembered Serizawa. With a smirk he decided to pay him a little visit to see how his arm was. As bullet after bullet left the gun Negi's final plan was slowly crystallizing in his head.

* * *

It was first when Negi had taken of his shoes that he realized something. Kotaro wasn't here, he had gone off to his own apartment and he had just gotten home to drop off some things before he went to pick up Asuna. Then who was making that noise in the kitchen?

The alerts went off in his head and he immediately took out the gun from under his jacket. He had already loaded it before leaving the gun-shop with a new holster. He held the gun against his chest and slowly sneaked through the hallway before reaching the door. Flipping the safety he spun around the corner, aiming the gun inside. His eyes widened when he saw who it was. Inside his kitchen, leaning back on a chair with a mug of tea in his hands, sat Fate.

"Welcome home." He said before Negi suddenly felt something press into his back, with wide eyes he realized it was a gun. He slowly raised his hands and an arm shot out from his back, removing the gun. He was pushed into the kitchen when Fate indicated a chair, "Take a seat." It wasn't a request and Negi sat down in front of the man as he noticed that the man who had disarmed him placed himself behind him.

He felt cold sweat in his neck, Fate had him at his mercy now. The albino must have found out somehow… Negi realized that if he wanted to survive this he'd have to be very slick. Deciding that he wouldn't be as weak as the last time he had met the man he took up the mug that stood in front of him as calmly as he could and took a sip of it. If Fate thought anything of this he didn't show it.

"So…" Negi eventually said, "What makes you come all the way here to visit me?" the question was voiced innocently enough; he had to start out with pretending to not knowing anything, begging would be useless, Fate didn't know mercy. Said man didn't seem to bite at his faux-ignorance.

"Why do you think?" He asked, Negi could hear it was rhetorically, and started to sweat slightly. This was not good. Behind him he could hear the rustle of cloth and his entire body tensed. Instead of keep acting the fool he decided to come clean. He couldn't con the con master.

"What do you have to lose?" He asked the albino, his heart pounding as Fate took another sip of tea. "If I fuck up nobody will know it was you, if I succeed your profits will skyrocket, either way you don't need to do anything. It's a win-win scenario." Negi hoped that he'd listen but it was a vain hope.

"Do you believe that money is anything I am concerned with?" Fate asked, and Negi suddenly felt the gun being pressed to the back of his head. "Your thuggish plans will disgrace me in the eyes of the family and in this situation I cannot afford it." Now Negi was near panic, what the hell was he going to do! He had to keep talking… buy more time, find some exit. In a sudden flash of insight, spurred by his fear, he suddenly realized something.

"Then why did you put me there in the first place?" Negi said, "Was it so you could stop me when I started to get ambitious and thereby score points with the family? Do you have to use that low tactics now?"

"Fool." Fate's eyes suddenly showed something, Negi was prepared to put a lot on that it was anger. Things only got more dangerous from here on out. The only thing he could hope for was that the calm and logical man would let him finish. "The only one who only leads is the Oyabun." Fate continued, "I am not him; my heritage will make that a forbidden position for me."

"Yeah." Negi said quickly, swallowing before he continued, keep talking, keep talking, every second talking was a second alive, "He's an old coot who's about to die. Tell me something?" Negi was out in uncharted territory now. Sorely running on instinct and what he already knew he continued to talk. "When the new Oyabun is chosen… are you gonna be dismissed unless you can keep up a good show of keeping Tokyo calm while the real family is waiting for him to die?" Negi noticed that Fate's eyes were blazing now and pushed on; it was too late to stop now.

"Fate-sama…" He continued, for the first time addressing the man properly, flattery could buy him a few seconds, probably, "If you tell me that you haven't gotten what it takes to be a leader I'm gonna call bullshit here. As you said the only reason they won't choose you is because you are a foreigner. Why take that shit is all I ask? You're way more skilled than them and if you can't be given command, wrest it from them. It's the law of nature, if they are too weak to see your skill they will die. It's Jinkiritsu. If they can't see your strength, they will be devoured by it."

"Your death-warrant was just signed." Fate said and Negi heart the hammer on the gun being pulled backwards. "I am a loyal servant of the Yukihiro group." Now Negi's entire body trembled and he felt like he was about to soil himself at any second.

"That isn't Jinkiritsu!" He said with a shaking voice, the only hope he had left was to throw the own man's rule back into his face "They stymie you instead of taking advantage of your strength! They won't let you devour for them because they fear you! Fear is weakness and strength is all that matters! They have already forsaken the right to be on top! And you keep serving them! You've broken your own rule!"

Fate stared into Negi's face for a long time, Negi begged to whatever god that would listen that the albino would listen to him. He couldn't fucking die here, he couldn't let Asuna come home to see his corpse! The young man tried to keep talking but the words stuck in his throat.

In the end something happened though, Fate smiled. Not a false smile like the ones he had given Asuna but a genuine smile. Of course, genuine to the albino meant cold and calculating but still… Negi suddenly felt how the gun was removed from his head and a clicking noise as the hammer fell back into place. Fate's guard stepped out into view again and positioned himself behind his employer.

"Applause." Fate said as he took another sip, "I did not expect you to have that amount of level-headedness. It seemed to me that your little romp with Sakura had made you loose your head. I have no need of mad dogs."

"...Oh?" Negi has sunken together, like an inflatable mattress, at the realization that he had survived and now his thought were in shambles, he barely understood what Fate said. The albino took yet another sip of his tea and looked up at him.

"Yes," he continued, his cold eyes drilling into him, "Just so we can be clear on what rules that apply I'll make them clear to you. First: I know everything you do, I know what you are planning, I know how you are planning to do it, I know about your deal with Albireo. I even know what you ate for lunch today, it was miso ramen." Negi felt cold inside as he realized how little freedom he in reality had from the pale man.

"Second:" Fate continued, "I have no problem with ambition _as long_ as it doesn't go to your head. Third: If you make one move on me it will be Asuna who'll take the consequences. Understood?"

"Got it." Negi said, all bravado gone. He felt more like a trembling rabbit in front of Fate. All this time he had felt like he was on the top but now Fate had him at his mercy, had always had him there. He was just as powerless as when he had first started out with this.

"Good." Fate said as he put down the mug, "Then there won't be any misunderstandings. You may continue your operations at your discretion lieutenant." Negi suddenly blinked, lieutenant? "Just keep the overt violence to a minimum. I must maintain some semblance of having control. When you are preparing to make your move contact me directly instead of going via Albireo-san, his mission is over."

"Was that boss he talked about you?" Negi asked and Fate nodded, "I suppose that answers the question why a hot-shot like him was visiting a back room like that to gamble." He said to himself and Fate smiled slightly again. "Okay then, Fate-sama." Negi said, feeling that this guy deserved that title, "I'll keep it rolling; Mahora will be yours in a few months." Fate nodded and got up from his seat before he turned to look out of the window. A Mercedes had rolled up outside the apartment and his other guard, Hiroshi, came out of it together with Asuna.

"I took the liberty of having Hiroshi fetch your sister from school," Fate added, "And before I forget…" He begun but Negi cut him off.

"You can't be seen in this area anymore huh?" He asked, "Officially you haven't got anything to do with me, except for the call I'm on my own." Fate glanced at him.

"Correct." He said before leaving, the guard following him. Negi could finally start breathing again when the albino had left his apartment. He slumped together over the kitchen table and hid his face in his hands. Lesson learned, never _ever_ even _think_ of messing with Fate.

* * *

Serizawa grumbled to himself as he opened the locked door to his dorm room. How _dared_ those despicable delinquents to this to him? As he entered he felt at his left eye and winced, it still hurt. He had been doing his job, informing the delinquent high schoolers that they weren't allowed to "hang around" outside the dormitories when one of then had punched him if the face.

Punched him! What was he going to do now? He couldn't go around looking like this; people would think he had joined one of those fighting clubs. As he entered the main room he wondered if his make up would be sufficient to cover it up, he was so engrossed in this that he didn't notice the man sitting by the table before he announced himself.

"That eye looks pretty bad Serizawa." A voice that made him freeze said. Slowly turning to the side and looking at the table he swallowed when he recognized the man there. Red hair that had a natural unruliness he'd kill for, brown eyes that were cold and unforgiving, a scar on the cheek that only added to the man's low class appeal, black and white street fashion clothes from Harajuku finished off with that long coat. It was him… the drug dealer that had broken his arm!

Serizawa snapped back to reality and backpedaled towards the wall, terrified. However he was stopped when he slammed into someone and looked back to see the thug the dealer had ordered to break his arm. A pair of beefy hands slammed down on his shoulders and the thug pushed him forward, making him land by the table. He looked up to see the dealer smile at him.

"Why so jittery?" His smooth voice said, "I'm just here to talk with you. Take a seat." The man gestured towards the other end of the table. Wildly trembling, Serizawa got up and sat down at the opposite end.

"I-If this is about what I did back then I swear I haven't told anyone!" He said, hoping that the man would believe him, "I told them I broke it when I was running in the forest. I never told them about you!" He was so scared the tears were starting to fall; he didn't want to die! Now the dealer chuckled, a sound that made chills creep down Serizawa's spine.

"Do I really look that scary to you?" He asked, "Well I do suppose I look like the kind of man that has a chat with people before shooting them." He reached into his coat and then he pulled out something; a gun! Serizawa pulled back again and let out a terrified sound before the dealer put the gun on the table, "There, he said, giving him an amused look, "Guns on the table. Kotaro that goes for you too." Serizawa looked back at the thug and suddenly saw how he pulled out the biggest gun he had ever seen from under his bulky jacket. Strolling over to the table he put it beside the dealer's gun, dwarfing it.

"Now get behind me, where he can see you." The dealer continued, the thug grumbled to himself as he got behind the dealer and leaned against the wall. Serizawa suddenly realized something, he wasn't stupid after all, this must be a gesture of good will, guns on the table and everyone present was visible. Something told him that this man was more than just a lowly dealer and that calmed him somewhat, knowing that the man in front of him was an upper class criminal. That meant that he was a more than just a greedy lowlife out after quick money and with no morals whatsoever. Serizawa slowly sat down again and the dealer smiled.

"So…first and foremost," The man said, "How has life been for you the latest weeks? I haven't seen you around the alley for a while now. Was there something I did?" The man gave him an innocent look and Serizawa felt another chill down his spine, "Have I not always given you the best available? How come you terminated a beautiful business relationship just like that?"

"Wh… what are you saying!" Serizawa pointed at his arm, "You broke my arm!" the dealer now raised an eyebrow.

"Tell me something… Serizawa." The thug behind the dealer now spoke up; his hoarse voice making him shiver, "You findin' it any strange that I fucked you up when you trying t' push onto our turf?" the thug leaned over the table and gave his a malicious glare. "Know your place rooster head." The thuggish man growled and Serizawa inched backwards, whimpering.

"That's enough Kotaro." the dealer's voice was cold as ice, way more terrifying than ever before, and the thug, Kotaro, fell back to the wall again. The dealer looked back to Serizawa and smiled. "As you can see, there are those who prefer that I stay in business and this guy is actually the gentlest of them. Normally the punishment for what you did would be a one way trip to the chemical factories and your private acid bath but I have other plans for you, Serizawa-kun."

"P-plans...!" the alarm bells went off in the blonde man's head, what were they going to do with him?

"Well…" the dealers smirk only froze his lungs even more, "You DID have the audacity to try to intimidate me…" the man snorted. "Me!" The hired thug was laughing like he had just heard the most ridiculous thing ever. The almost barking laugh forced Serizawa to bend forward to keep the hold on his bladder. "And you also made quite a scene about the drugs culture in this town a few weeks ago." He suddenly took up his gun and pointed it at his face. It was like staring at the hole to hell

"You stinking hypocrite." He hissed, "Not only are you a liar and a cheat to your peers but you tried to mess up my business. A liar, a cheat, a traitor, a slimy eel loyal to nothing, isn't that a pretty good description of you!" The bodyguard snarled at this, like it was new information to him, and that only made him freeze up more. Now he was only waiting for the signal for the hunk of meat called his associate to tear him to pieces like some wild animal.

"P…please." Serizawa begged, "Please…" however the dealer didn't even look at him, only lowered the gun before turning to the thug.

"Tell me something, how is your aim with that elephant killer nowadays?" the dealer asked, pointing to the larger gun on the table.

"I can hit a dime from ten meters an' fire off four rounds before my hand hurts," Kotaro replied, "Makes quite a mess tho'. Apparently it turns a head into goo in three rounds."

"Then why fire four?" the dealer with a curious tone, as if he was asking about the weather. Serizawa whimpered; he was going to die, he was going to die as a play thing to these killing machines.

"I like cappin' idiots who fuck with me." The man's eyes were like those of a demon.

"That's a reasonable reason I suppose, well then, Serizawa-kun." The man looked back to him and smiled mildly. "Do you want to fuck with me or Kotaro?" he asked innocently.

Serizawa shook his head like it was a spinning top. "N-no sir!"

"That's a nice tone you got with me tonight." The dealer pulled the safety off his 9mm off and on, like death was deciding if it could be bothered to finish him tonight. Serizawa swore that if he got out of this he'd go to church once a week. "Where was it when I broke your arm? Are you a good boy now or..." he cocked the gun and aimed it right between his eyes, "Are you being sarcastic with me?"

Serizawa felt water trickle down his eyes. He was going to die, hell he was just waiting for the final blow. His superior attitude was nothing. Daddy couldn't save him from this. No money in the world had prepared him for this moment. No pre-school held a course in what to do when someone aims a firearm right where his brain was. He was scared. He wanted to scream or cry out but was too scared of the slightest noise provoking a bigger noise and the darkness that would follow.

"He's crying," Kotaro suddenly laughed, patting him on the shoulder, "Hey Negi, tell him why we are here already or he might crap himself!"

"Of course," the dealer, Negi was his name, put the safety on and put the gun down again. "I am here because I have an offer for you that I think you might be interested in, a… mutually beneficent agreement you might call it. How does the following sound to you? The honor of having dealt with the delinquent problem," the man indicated Serizawa's black eye and smirked, "whatever you want from my store, enough to start your own business if you wish to, a sharp reduction of the "problem with narcotics distribution" as that teacher put it, something you could take credit for too" Negi was referring to something Nitta-sensei, the chairman of the School's Board of Directory, had said in a speech at the semester start where he had spoken up against the drug-dealing, "and of course…" he continued, "the unique benefits that will come from being a business associate of mine. Sounds pretty sweet, don't it?"

"I… I'm getting that? Y-you want to give me all that?" Serizawa suddenly felt like he was about to faint from the relief, they weren't going to kill him!

"That and more, if you show the right initiative." Negi said "Can I count on your cooperation or should I consider the bullets again?"

"I.-I'm in!" Serizawa said quickly, "I'm definitively in. W-what do you want me to do?"

"Good!" Negi grinned and leaned backwards, "Good to have you aboard Serizawa-kun." He pocketed his gun again. The red-headed man smiled to himself and thought, _"Step one, done."_

_

* * *

_

"Wow." Negi said to himself, as he looked up at the large warehouse. "I didn't know there was this level of shabbiness in Mahora."

"Well… the Mahora Campus was originally an industrial complex that was devastated during World War Two." Serizawa said beside him, "after the war it was rebuilt during the American occupation as a model for the future Japan. One ever further westernized than before, some believe that they even tried to change the fundamental culture. However about fifteen percent of the old industrial complex was still somewhat operational and was allowed to continue operating, closing down only recently due to the recession…"

"Yeah, yeah…" Kotaro said, slapping him over the head, "Save it; I skipped history for a reason. Just show us where the gangs hang out so we can get this done."

"You skipped everything and anything that was associated with school Kotaro," Negi said as they were shown towards the back of the warehouse. "I still remember that English class when you couldn't' get one single letter right on that six-letter word. The word that happened to be your name!"

"Fuck you professor." Kotaro frowned.

"Not any more," Negi said, "We have a bona fide university student here now after all, he's the professor." Negi pointed at Serizawa, who currently would have laughed at their exchange but the knowledge that they both could kill him in a second made it a little too hard for him to laugh. Instead he merely indicated one of the side doors where two teenagers was standing, looking bored and smoking cigarettes.

"So there they are huh?" Kotaro said, "They the ones who beat you up?"

"Yeah." Serizawa said, "They call themselves "the Mahora Guns" and practically rule this part of Mahora, some of them have even been charged for assault."

"Now THAT'S hardcore." Negi and Kotaro chorused with a sarcastic tone.

"Let's do this," Negi said, "Kotaro, do your thing, Serizawa, stick close to me, it's time to mark territory." Kotaro pushed his fists against each other and walked out straight against them, his usual sadistic look on his face. The gang members noticed both him and Negi and Serizawa who came up behind him.

"Hey you!" one of them yelled, "What the fuck do you think you're doing on out turf!" he walked up towards Kotaro with a baseball bat in his hand. Kotaro looked at the bat and snorted.

"That stick's you compensatin' for your tiny dick?" He asked and the thug gaped.

"What the…" he looked at his friend, "Who the fuck do you think you are!" he yelled at Kotaro, "Huh!"

"One," Kotaro said as he took a puff of his cig, "I'm ten times th' man you'll ever be, and two:" He suddenly kicked the man in the crotch and planted his elbow in the face of the other, sending them both to the ground, yelling in pain, "I'm th' guy who just beat you up." He gave them each a kick in the face, knocking them out, before he stepped up to the door, picking out his gun and kicking the door open with all he had.

Inside, squeezed in between a bunch of large containers, the obvious signs of a gang's hideout could be seen. The Mahora Guns had remade this place into what looked like a giant teenager's room with mattresses on the floors and posters all over the walls. And all around the place the Mahora Guns had noticed him and was getting up from the mattresses and the old sofas and chairs they had looted. Stepping inside he fired a pair of shots into the air.

"Okay you lowlife pieces of shit!" He roared, "I got a fifty caliber cannon here and I ain't afraid to use it! Line up, right fucking now, and be a good bunch of bitches or I'm gonna make this place a fucking Hiroshima faster than the yanks ever could." To drive the point home he shot off another round against the bottle one of the gang members held, shattering it and nearly blowing off the guy's hand. "Line up now!" the gang members, got to their feet, staring at him.

One of the gang members, one who obviously was high on something judging from his wild eyed expression, pulled out a knife when Kotaro started to roar and charged. Kotaro only rolled his eyes before he shot the young man square between the eyes. The wall behind him was drenched in blood as the gang member limply fell to the floor, half his head gone.

"Any one else wanna be a fucking hero?" Kotaro yelled, nearly frothing now, "Huh? Come on! Come on so I can fucking kill you!"

"Easy Kotaro, no need to recreate Sekigahara here." Negi said as he waltzed in through the door, making a mental note to have a chat with Kotaro about taking it easy. He looked as if he'd rather kill them all. "Everybody!" He raised his voice, addressing the gathered gang members, who now stood with their backs against the wall, obviously scared shitless of the man with the giant gun, "Allow me to introduce myself. I'm a friend of Serizawa here," Negi indicated Serizawa and noticed that the thugs winced.

"And that probably everything I need to say on the matter," He continued, "Who was it Serizawa-san?" He noticed in the corner of his eye how the gang members tensed, obviously regretting having messed with him. Some of them looked pale. Serizawa, amusingly enough having lost the look of uncertainty on his face, pointed directly at one of the larger thugs, a guy with a pimpled face and a pomade filled hair, didn't that style get old about forty years ago?

"I see." Negi continued, "Now, as you probably understand I'm here to even the score for what you did to him. Nobody touches my people, that simple. But I'm a good man," He told the thugs, "I like the idea of redemption so I'm gonna give you a chance," Negi took out a cigarette and lit it before he took a deep sip from it and blew out the smoke.

"Do any of you really think that you are anything at all?" He asked them, "You think that all of Mahora trembles before you, that everyone fears you. The truth is: they don't. You are less than shit, dirt under the fridge that they can't be arsed to deal with. That brings us to my second reason for being here." Suddenly Negi pulled out the gun and pointed it at the gang member Serizawa had pointed out, the thugs all suddenly trembled, they feared him, "But let's first deal with the first matter." He smirked.

Negi squeezed the trigger and a loud bang echoed through the warehouse as the large gang member fell down to the floor, dead as a rock. Some of the other gang members jumped to and stepped away from their dead friend but a signal from Negi had Kotaro fire several more rounds into the air, making them step back, though most of them were hunching by the wall now. Negi looked at the dead body and took a deep puff of smoke to stop his stomach from churning. His hands were shaking but he forced them to stop, he wouldn't break down, not here, not now!

"Now for the second matter," He continued, seemingly unfazed but in truth shaken to the core, "As I said earlier, you are nothing. You see these two dead bodies?" He asked, pointing at the two corpses that now lay between them, the thugs looked like they would piss themselves as two of their number lay, stone cold dead, on the floor, "Nobody's gonna give a shit about it." Negi said loudly, watching as they cowered like terrified animals, "Bitches like you won't be missed by anyone, they will be grateful to be rid of you! So tell me," He raised the gun against them, "why should I not keep pressing the trigger until it goes "click"?" He smirked at the gang members.

"You… you can't fucking do this!" one of the gang members suddenly yelled, "You think you can get away with fucking shooting Yutaro?" The boy, a kid about fifteen, seemed like he was about to cry. Negi just raised the gun against him and squeezed off a pair of rounds into the wall beside his head. The guy threw himself to the floor and cowered again.

"I don't think," Negi said, "I know. Who would care? You are the "Mahora Guns" after all, a bunch of lowlifes plaguing the backwaters of a fancy school where the stuck up upper-class cunts rule. It would be a fucking dream for them if they could get rid of you. Hell, if I off you here and now I could perhaps even cash in a fucking reward for pest control." He let the gun pipe travel to aim from one end of the line to the other, noticing how the gang members got more and more scared. "You're the trash of society, no one would miss you." He grinned at them, Kotaro chucking sinisterly at the sight of their fear.

"Basically," he said after having let them sweat for a few seconds, "the only reason I could have to let you live, you know what that is?" He looked at their terrified faces and smirked, "Do you?" He asked them, watching their terrified faces, "Well… do you?" Negi suddenly lowered the gun and smiled at them. "I actually have other uses for you." He answered his own question as he put the gun back inside his coat. "Look at me!" He snapped and their heads shot up, their eyes filled with what Serizawa's had shown just about an hour ago, fear. He smiled inwardly, now they were wide open… time to take over.

"My name is Negi." He said, "You can call me boss, chief or leader, I'll even let you pick. The important thing is that from now on, you'll work for me. I'm from this moment on your leader, your president and fucking god!" He snapped his fingers and Kotaro fired off another round into the air before reloading the gun. "Guys!" He told them with a smile and wide arms, "Welcome to the new world. Welcome to the underworld."

He leaned against the container and looked at them… they feared him and they were still confused about what the hell was going on. They would do for now. The ball was rolling, now the real battle would begin. He and a bunch of intimidated lowlifes against all of Mahora… this might get fun.

_At the same time_

The inspector grumbled as he got out of the car and walked down the street. The kids were currently all over the place, hovering just if front of the tape that closed off the alleyway, they acted like it was a frigging circus. He pushed his way in between them and tried to keep from spilling his coffee as he hunched and got under the tape. The sergeant that met him was obviously a newbie judging from his green face. The inspector didn't pay him any notice and walked into the alley to witness the crime scene.

The sight that met him wasn't pretty at all. He guessed that it was the body of a man but he really couldn't say since the body was burned beyond recognition. On the ground in front of him a charred body, positioned in an X and with the entire skin turned to coal, lay. The fumes that came drifting against him from the body reminded him of bacon… a gust of wind made the smoke pour out from the alley and behind him he could hear the newbie puke. The inspector turned to look at the wall and noticed a large message on the wall.

"I cleaned up." he quoted the message. Great… a psycho had arrived in Mahora.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

WARNING: the same warning that applied to chapter 5 applies here, you're meant to feel a bit uneasy after reading this.

* * *

Negi slammed the door open and stormed into the warehouse, looking like a thunderstorm, with Kotaro right behind him. The Mahora Guns looked up at him and quickly got to their feet, the look on his face, enough to make them shiver with fear, told them that the leader meant business.

"All right you little pricks." Negi growled, "In one month this campus has gone from a happy and peaceful goldmine to a fucking dry vein and I very much would like to know what the fuck you're doing?"

During the latest four weeks Mahora had been terrorized by the madman the news had dubbed "The Cleaner Murder." Said madman had been prowling the back-alleys of the campus and was in the process of killing drug-dealers one by one. He first stabbed them to death and the precision of his stabs, always three cuts the severed the main arteries of the heart, were described as the mark of a deranged psychopath. That wasn't the worst part though… After this he would cover the bodies in bleach and set them on fire to wipe away the filth they were.

Said ritualistic killer was currently confounding the cops, having left three dead bodies behind but not a single clue. Now no one went outside more than what was strictly necessary, several kids had been taken home by their parents and the drug dealing was currently in its saddest state ever. It was this that was currently making Negi so angered.

"Hey… boss." One of the gangsters said, "It's not our fault. It's that fucking psycho! He's like, everywhere." Negi now rolled his eyes and sneered at his underlings.

"He's, like, everywhere?" He asked quietly, slowly walking towards the guy before stopping in front of him and putting an arm on his shoulder. "Then", he reached into his coat and before the man could react he had Negi's gun in his mouth. "You better be everywhere too or I'll leave your brain everywhere in this fucking room." He said calmly into his face before spinning around and looking at the others.

"This guy has crossed a fucking line and he did it a long time ago. I want you posted all over Mahora!" He yelled at the terrified thugs, "From now on you're keeping a fucking eye on every dealer, every alleyway and every corner of this fucking school! Get me?" he asked, still holding the gun inside the gangster's mouth. The Mahora Guns all nodded quickly but he could see that they were afraid of the madman too. These guys were not used to this shit, no one was. Fortunately Negi had planned for this.

"Kotaro." He said as he put away his gun and said guy came up with a large bag slung over his shoulders. The man dropped the bag on the table and opened it. The gangsters suddenly fell quiet as they saw the man take out a gun and put it on the table. Pistol after pistol came up on the table and soon enough weapons to start a war were decorating the table. Negi turned to look at the Mahora Guns who seemed like they didn't believe their eyes.

"They are yours, one for you each." He said as he lit up a smoke, idly thinking that he perhaps should cut down on them, "You can't call yourself the Mahora Guns if you aren't packing them." The gangsters walked up to the table and stared at the guns, all of them gleaming in the sunlight that came in through the large windows. The kids probably hadn't ever seen anything like this before, "I don't' like to repeat myself but I'm gonna do it this time." Negi said as he let them pick up the weapons and admire them.

"Hey I'm talking here!" He yelled, making them turn to him again, "Get out there and cover the streets, get it?" He growled and the gangsters nodded, "Inform whatever dealers you get hold of that I'm not letting this fucker run around any more and that they better know it. Also, for sixty percent I'm covering their asses too. Questions?" One of the gangsters, a teenager with bleached hair and a series of piercings in his ears spoke up.

"So we're covering the alleys and if the dealers pay we cover them too. Should we tell them to just pay first, see what we can shake out of them?" He asked, summarizing the whole idea pretty good and adding a good idea of his own. Negi made a note to keep an eye on him.

"Nice thinking, that's what I want to see, do that." Negi said to him, "And also… the guns are. For. The. Psycho. Only!" Negi said, putting emphasis on every word to make sure they got it, "If they pay up you cover them with fists and threats, nothing more. It's all show and respect, wave them but don't use them, they're yours now and if you need more ammo tell Serizawa, he'll tell me. Anything more?" He asked and the Mahora Guns kept quiet, apparently they had been told what they needed to hear. "Then what are you waiting for?" Negi asked, snapping as them, "Better times? Move it!"

* * *

_Three weeks later _

The Mahora underworld was everything but big, in fact, it was nearly non-existent. Apart from the few dozen dealers that existed there and the scattered gangs, little more than delinquents, there was little to find in the "street-level" of crime. Still, Negi's gang made up the most heavily armed and motivated group on the campus and within a few days the word was out that someone was planning to strike back against the psycho, that next time he killed there would be someone out there to strike back at him, to kill him like the rabid animal he was.

The rumor spread like a wildfire to all of Mahora and the reactions was varied. Most students and several of the teachers were actually calmed by it. The fact that it was a proclamation of vigilante justice and people who would take the law in their own hands didn't matter to many of the Mahora inhabitants, who now feared walking outside when the sun had set. The police's efforts had been in vain and they were being more and more criticized by the Mahora inhabitants who didn't want to live in fear. If those who lived in the criminal underworld had sworn to kill him many couldn't help but feel that that would change things

On the other hand, many were only angered by it, seeing it like nothing but the bragging of thugs trying to prove themselves. Many of the older and more traditional faculty members were incensed by these criminals blatant revelation of what crimes they were planning. The police took it even more seriously and in a few days several police officers were out patrolling the streets, keeping their eyes out for the gangsters who had claimed this.

It was this that had caused Serizawa Saito, one of the local celebrities due to his position both as the spokesman and head of the student union and the captain of Mahora's biathlon team, speak up in protest. The revelation that the police were putting effort that could have been put into the chase for the serial killer into trying to apprehend those who wanted to solve the situation had apparently angered the man, which was revealed in a speech he held in front of the students of Mahora.

"In these days it becomes more and more important to look to our personal responsibility." He had said during a large come-together to honor the murder victims, "Even if we want to do it we cannot blindly put our faith in that others will solve the problems and trials that arise. With a police force more interested in maintaining their position as the ones with monopoly on dealing with crime than actually doing what this position entails we must look to ourselves for aid. Help yourself and the one next to you, you must do it, unfortunately we cannot trust anyone else to do this anymore."

His speech had caused standing ovations at the gathering but the Board of Directory had become furious at him. His conduct had been found "improper and short-sighted" and thus he had been summoned to a hearing in front of the board. As he opened the door and looked inside the large room he came to think of the Inquisitions of Medieval Europe. The teachers and the headmaster sat like a flock of crows in their black suits, hawking behind the large desk. He swallowed when he saw the fact that this would put him at a psychological disadvantage. Their demeanor, attire and position were a classic example of using the environment for intimidation.

However he stepped inside, he couldn't really leave now and besides; he was Serizawa Saito! No group of old coots would scare him! He had thought about what to do now and had asked himself what Negi would have done. The solution had been glaringly simple, act like he didn't give a damn, irritate them and, if he could, turn the intimidation on them. With that in mind he slammed the door shut and swaggered in, not showing his anxiousness.

"Serizawa Saito." The dean said gravelly, his old voice scratching like an old record. "You are here to explain your words at the hour of commemoration yesterday. Be aware that your academic future is at stake here." The old man glared at him but Serizawa pretended to not care even thought he was shaking inside.

He had to go through with the plan, they might be able to throw him out of school but Negi would throw him out of a window. As he reached out and took one of the apples on the table in front of him where the men sat he noticed that they got ticked off by his gesture. He swallowed the lump in his throat, hoping that he could do this, and spoke up.

"I said what needed to be said." He told them with a clear voice. "Three people, three human beings, with dreams, ambitions, hopes and desires like us all have been murdered by a deranged madman."

"That is not the issue here, the issue…" Nitta-sensei began.

"I beg to differ Nitta-sensei!" Serizawa cut him off as he took a bite out of the apple, "That has everything to do with it. I am not happy that delinquents are threatening to kill but I am even unhappier about how the police, who have not made ANY progress in catching this psychopath, devote more resources to show that they are the boss instead of doing their job and catching this madman. They are a disgrace to their uniform and I have to speak up! Will this end with innocent students arrested since they had a mail-opener in their bags?"

"Miss Yuuko." The headmaster said to his secretary, who was documenting the hearing, "make sure to note down that Serizawa Saito refuses to explain his actions."

"I am explaining my actions." Serizawa said calmly, "It you who don't listen. At least I'm out there, saying something to the students who are too afraid to walk outside after sunset, who are looking into every alleyway for murderers!" Now he got fired up, "I haven't heard you say anything about the fact that there's a murderer on the loose but when I speak up you threaten me like this! My apologies but you are acting like you are hiding something, should I look for the murderer in here?"

"That's enough!" Nitta-sensei roared as he rose and slammed his hands into the table, "Your conduct is a disgrace to this school and we will not let you sully our respectability with your disgusting sympathy for simple hoodlums and criminals! Remember your place, student! We can expel you without a moment's warning and unless you take back all you've said we will!" For a few seconds everything was silent. The old man sat down, breathing harshly. Then Serizawa began to laugh. His laughter echoed through the room and several of the gathered members of the Board looked at him with a disbelieving look on their faces.

"I wonder how those headlines would look." Serizawa eventually said, still snickering, "Mahora expelling the head of the Student Union when he claimed that the police didn't do enough to catch the cleaner murderer. It does sound like quite a juicy piece of news." He looked at the old men.

"First:" He said smugly, "What you just said was a textbook example of both infringement of the freedom of speech AND abuse of authority. Second:" Serizawa reached into his pocket and took out something, "This is a portable recorder and as you can see it is recording for all it's worth," the old men now paled at what he said, though some of them suddenly looked as if they realized something, however Serizawa wasn't done.

"Third:" he continued "since this is neither a court nor police hearing I was in my full right to record this, a school hearing like this doesn't have that sort of integrity no matter how nice suits you wear." With those words he had crushed their hopes and he moved in for the kill, "And fourth: No honest court in the world would let you get away with this. Thank you gentlemen, have a nice afternoon." Serizawa put away the recorder again and walked outside, a smug look on his face.

* * *

As the final parts of the tape played a grin sought its way up on Kotaro's face which ended in a loud laugh as Serizawa's final words were played. The burly young man leaned back in his chair and laughed loudly at the blond's swift and merciless dealing with the School Board of Directory. The entire room echoed with his laughter and he reached forwards to slap Serizawa in the back, the blond yelped as the powerful slap knocked the air out of him.

As the blond head of the Student Union caught his breath he noticed that a grin had spread even on Negi's face. His boss chuckled at what he had heard on the tape as he looked at Serizawa with amusement dancing in his eyes.

"You really are the slimiest eel I know." Negi said with a chuckle, "Were you on any other side I'd have to consider killing you by now." He shifted in his seat, "What would you say would happen if that tape leaked to the press or something?" He watched Serizawa intently and suddenly Serizawa felt cold again, Negi had that look on his face that meant that what he answered now would be important.

"Well." He begun as he wet his lips, "It all depends on who we do it, mail it to them and it'll be a small note in the paper." He explained, his father owned three large papers and Serizawa had visited one of these several times, he knew well how it worked, "But if we can get it to some really driven journalist, one in the right position…" he paused for a second, "Then we're talking national news." He leaned back with a smile of his face.

"Even if most people who are in a position to affect things here would agree with the Board the resulting press coverage would be hell," He continued, "especially with the murderer on the loose. It's all about face; if things get really heated the Board will be disgraced. Some of them might have to resign, opening for… more reliable people to take over." He smirked at this, which person exactly he had in mind obvious.

"So to summarize," Negi said, "We get this to a good journalist. They make sure to raise hell about it, someone gets the blame for it and is fired and then you, who have talked so passionately about taking care of each other ect, ect is chosen as the new head of the board?"

He was inwardly impressed with the snake of a man, who was currently smiling a smile of false humility. In these last weeks he had proved himself to be a much grater asset than Negi ever could have guessed. Behind the pretty-boy facade was a sly and conniving man who loved the game of manipulation. Hell, many times he lied and deceived just for the sake of the manipulating. Negi turned to look at Kotaro, who raised an eyebrow at his glance.

"What do you say?" He asked his friend who shrugged; he noticed that Serizawa now tensed. Of course, that was the blonde's great weakness, at the prospect of physical violence he folded immediately, dropping all bravado and rhetoric to cower in fear.

"Yeah," Kotaro said, "Can't do anythin' other with this guy." Serizawa only sweating even more now and looking ready to bolt. However Negi raised his hand in a calming gesture.

"Remember what I told you when you started working for me?" Negi said and leaned backwards, smirking at Serizawa. "I said that if you do a good job there's more than just money to get from me. Remember?"

Serizawa blinked as he remembered what he had been told that day. He nodded to show that yes, he did remember. Negi extended his hand towards Serizawa, smiling at the man. Serizawa blinked but eventually reached out and took his hand.

"Welcome to the inner circle Saito," Negi said, for the first time using his first name, as he shook Saito's hand, "You are one of my number one guys now." Negi suddenly reverted the grip and captured Saito's hand in an arm-wrestling grip, "And also," he reached into his clothes and took out a set of car-keys, "It's time to party!" he smiled wryly as he pulled Saito out of his seat, "It's time for you to reap the real fruits of being bad, come on."

"Dibs on the biggest tits we can find," Kotaro called out as they all walked out to the car. Tonight would be one to remember.

* * *

"Perhaps I should make this an initiation rite." Negi said to himself as he sipped his drink, enjoying the armchair he was currently leaning back in. Negi had decided to take both Kotaro and Saito to Albireo's brothel, wanting to mark the occasion with something big. Letting his lieutenants loose on Al's whores was big enough. "Any insider from Saito's girl?" he then asked Evangeline, who had only moments ago come back from the lower levels and now was sharing a drink with them.

"You'll pay for the schoolgirl uniform he ripped apart." Evangeline said, "He's apparently a firecracker," the blonde beauty said, "He's got a lot of energy but he's quickly spent. After a ten-minute burst he was out like a light." She rolled her eyes, "He got a two out of ten and remember that those girls don't exactly deal with Don Juans." Negi laughed.

"Yeah he's a worthless creep but he's got his uses." He said, "What about Kotaro?" Idly he wondered what kind of messed up topics he had started to talk about recently. However Evangeline didn't seem to mind.

"He's a piston." Evangeline said, "If he paws anymore of my girls they'll all be able to form a support group in about…" Eva smirked, counting the fingers on her delicate looking hands. "…3 hours." She concluded. "Oh, and if you don't stop ogling me like that I'll have to remind you that I'm a married woman." She smirked at him.

"Oh really?" Negi asked innocently, "So… that means?" He feigned stupidity.

"That I'm not seeking company." Eva deadpanned.

"If that had been the case you would have said "happily" married." Negi pointed out and leaned forward, letting some of his chest show under his shirt, where the three uppermost buttons were open. "After all, perhaps he's on business," Negi continued with a low voice, "What you don't know won't hurt you."

"How little you know Negi-kun." Albireo's effeminate voice said and Negi's felt a breath of cold air on his neck as Al blew out a stream of air on it. Negi instantly sat up straight as an arrow, glaring at Albireo. "Ignorance has killed so many." The man smiled at him, sizing him up as if he was a piece of meat. "But why not?" he continued, "I'm always open to new experiences and a threesome can be very rewarding."

"No thanks." Negi said quickly, "I'll settle for the usual stuff."

"Lesson of today, boya." Evangeline smirked, "Don't try to challenge the best, the results will…" she stopped as Albireo came up to her and gave her a deep kiss, ending with letting his tongue slide down her neck. Evangeline shivered at this before she finished. "…be troubling for you." She added huskily and Negi silently wished that he hadn't finished his girl that fast. Damn this pair of sluts, they could get a rock aroused!

"Anyway, Negi-kun." Albireo said as he sat down in the armchair Next to Negi, "I'm surprised to see you here," the man admitted, "After all, with the cleaner murder on the loose the market should have run quite dry at the moment."

Negi nodded, "Yes it is," he sighed, "That madman works like a charm in drying up the market, I'm hardly selling anything. Still, I can't let that get me down. It's as an opportunity, really, a chance to focus on other things."

"Like what?" Evangeline asked, "Are you getting ambitions?"

"I've had them for a while," Negi admitted, "while the market is down I can focus on other matters. Still, the nut will be done for sooner or later, either by my guys' hands or the cops', same shit really." He shrugged as he took a sip of his drink. "And then the other things will probably already be running."

"Really?" Albireo asked, noticing how Negi had grown. He seemed to adapt nicely, turning a bad situation to his advantage as much as he could. Albireo begun to see more and more what Fate had noticed that time. "Any special plans?" he asked innocently.

"That's for me to know and for you to find out." Negi said, "But it's gonna pay off, greatly."

"Pay off huh?" Albireo said, his face suddenly going dead serious. "About that," he said with a toneless voice, "I remember a deal we made a while ago. One where you were supposed to send us new recruits." The effeminate man leaned forwards, "I hope you haven't forgotten that, seeing as how you're planning and scheming so much. That wouldn't be especially smart of you."

"Don't worry," Negi said with a smirk, "I got a girl in mind even now. She'll be sent your way in a few days." It was time to pay back what Albireo and Evangeline had given him.

* * *

_One week later _

In the gloom of dusk most of the campus was silent, with night falling and the murderer on the loose nobody ventured outside. No one except for one girl. Said girl, Izumi Ako, was currently hurrying along the streets of Mahora with tears streaming down her face. Today they had had P.E and for the pale girl that was the worst part of her week. She would have to stand in the classroom, taking off her clothes and reveal the ugly thing that covered her back.

She hated that scar! Why did she have to have that ugly thing marking her? It wasn't fair! She knew already that she was useless; she didn't have anything that her classmates had. She wasn't pretty or smart like they were, and with the scar on her back, that ugly thing that marked her as a freak, she was even more worthless. She had noticed them during P.E. They had stared at her back, turning away with shivers of disgust.

She couldn't stand it, she couldn't stand their looks! She hated being a freak, she hated being treated like she didn't exist, all the others girls never even talking to her. She couldn't take it! And her parents… those people who always yelled at her, talked about how worthless her grades were, constantly comparing her to her older sister who excelled in everything. As she hurried down the stairs she begged that he'd be there.

He was the only one that even looked at her; he was the only one who smiled at him, who made her feel like she was worth something. In world where everything was gray and she wondered why she even lived, he gave her at least a few moments of happiness. With those things he gave her… she could feel good, she could feel happy, if only for a second. In exchange for small favors, things she did willingly, she could feel good, she could see the world in black and white, a world that made sense!

In the beginning he had demanded money, sums she had had to work in the evenings to get even with the money her parents sent. Then, when her grades her dropped even more and she had needed more of the things only he could give, he had demanded other things. He wanted to know about her class, about the other girls in school, and she told him, Why not, that was the only way for her to feel good, was that really such a crime? That she wanted to feel good?

When she rounded the corner of the stairs and hurried into the alley her heart skipped a beat when she saw the familiar silhouette inside the alley. She almost ran up to him and hugged him but she stopped herself, she knew that he didn't want that so she stood back, carefully walking inside. He didn't like her being familiar or drawing attention to herself. She had to be inconspicuous because one thing he disliked was attention.

"Good evening Ako-chan." His voice said and she shivered in delight at the suffix. She loved that voice; it was just how she had always imagined the prince of her dreams to talk. In the faint light she could make out his handsome face, even the scar that now ran along the lower part of his cheek. That scar made him even more handsome, made him look rugged.

"Good evening Negi-sa…" Ako stopped herself when she realized what she was saying and Negi's eyes suddenly drilled into her in anger. What was she doing! She knew that she wasn't supposed to use his name, only ask right off. "H-how was work?" She asked timidly, faltering under his glare. Oh no… she had messed up, what if he cut her off?

What as she going to do? If he cut her off she wouldn't' have anywhere else to turn! She started to rack her mind, trying desperately to come up with a solution. If she paid him more he might forgive her, but how? She didn't have any more money! What was she going to do now?

The first time she had met him she had been hiding in this alley, crying over her lot in life. It was then that he had shown up and introduced her to the only thing she lived for now. At first it had only been some weed, something she had smoked when he had told her that it would help, she had been too sad to care about the fact that it was drugs and one of the girls in her class had talked about how cannabis wasn't really a drug at all. However the joints had only helped a little.

It was then that she had asked if he had anything better and then he had introduced her to the only thing that mattered to her now. He had helped her during her first time, shown her how to do it, given her a needle to use and even been the one who gave her the first injection of her life.

God what a feeling it had been! For a while she had been free, in the throes of blissful ecstasy. For awhile the entire world had gone away and she had finally been happy. Then, when she had gone back to the ugly reality, she had almost cried. But he had told her that as long as she could pay what it would cost him to get her it she could have as much as she wanted.

"Just get on with it if you want some." He said coldly, "I'm not staying here a second more than needed."

Ako got down on her knees automatically and reached to open the buttons on her top. Just like she had done a dozen times before she pulled it off in front of him. He had said that he wanted to see her breasts despite the fact that she hardly had any and she didn't dare to protest, she didn't even wear a bra when she ran out to meet him nowadays.

Sliding her hands up her body she reached for his fly. Carefully, ever so carefully so he could see that she was obeying his instructions, she opened his expensive jeans; making sure that she didn't damage them and slid down the pants down his legs. She reached up to plant a trembling kiss in the bulge in front of her and reached up to pull down the boxers too.

_Flashback:_

_"I-I only got thirty thousand," she said with a trembling voice and almost winced when she noticed the look on Negi's face. _

_"Well that's not enough." He said matter-of-factly "Fifty per bag, I'm not budging." _

_Ako grabbed the bills in her hand and shook. Did this mean that she had to go without? She had tried; she had tried so hard to get the money. She hadn't even bought lunch at school in order to scrape together as much as she could but it wasn't enough. What was she going to do now?_

_"Still…" Negi said with a distant voice as he seemed to be remembering something. Ako's head snapped up and she looked at him, hoping that he'd remembered something that would let her get it for what she had. The look on his face, however, scared her, there was something dark in his eyes and she nearly took a step backwards. "…if you really want it I know something you can pay with." He continued._

_"W-what is that?" Ako asked, feeling nervousness well up inside her, what was he planning? Negi leaned forwards and placed his mouth near her ear. _

_"If you really want it you can pay by…" the last words were whispered and Ako's eyes shot wide open and she backed off, horrified at what he had said. _

_"W-w-what!" She said, feeling tear well up in her eyes, not that… how could he demand that of her! " Y-you want me to suck…? No!" she exclaimed before she got her self-control back. Negi just raised an eyebrow at her fright and shrugged. _

_"Suit yourself," he said coldly, "I got other customers." With those words he turned around and started to leave: Ako stared at his back, watching as the thing she needed slipped away from her and after only a second she made up her mind. _

_"Okay!" She yelled after him and he looked back, "Okay, I-I'll do it…" She gritted her teeth as she looked down on the ground, fighting back the tears… "c-could you just tell me how to do it?"_

_The smile on Negi's face wasn't just sinister, it was evil. He walked back into the alley and dangled something in front of her. She looked up and saw that is was a bag of what she wanted._

_"Good girl," he said with an evil tone, "Now, let's see what we can do about it." _

_End Flashback:_

Grabbing his erect dick in her hands she wet her lips before she leaned forwards and swallowed it. Using her free hand she unbuttoned one of her own pants buttons and slipped a hand inside. He wanted her to play with herself when she did this and she didn't dare to fake it, she didn't dare to risk him noticing it.

She moved rhythmically as her head bobbed up and down on him, covering his dick with her saliva. Her jaw hurt but she wouldn't ever dare to complain about it. This meant too much to her, if she messed up she'd loose the only thing that mattered to her so she did her utmost.

In the weeks that had followed her first time she had done all she could to learn as much as possible about him. His tricks, his kinks, everything. She had lost count of how many ways she had sold herself to get the wonderful drugs, every time learning what she had to do to please him.

It was a ritual for her, a ritual to please the only man who could give her what she lived for. She pushed forwards so that his dick slid far down her throat, swallowing as she kept him there. It had taken her weeks to stop herself from gagging when she did this and now she was rewarded by his sharp intake of breath. Withdrawing slightly, letting him out of her throat, she started to run her tongue along his dick, along that spot that made him even more aroused. Her tongue and lips ran up and down on him, satisfying her as well as she could.

As the night proceeded Ako continued her task in the alley, throwing everything she had into pleasing Negi so that she could be happy. Sucking, licking, even nibbling slightly at him, she used everything she had learned, doing everything so that he wouldn't get bored and leave her. As she mentally counted the time she realized that soon he'd come. She'd swallow, as he wanted her to do, she always did.

The slight trembling in him warned her and she dove down on it again, burying the dick in her throat and massaging it intently with her throat as she felt his fluids shoot out of him, down her throat and into her. He hated it when it dribbled down her chin. He always said it could cause problems and Ako didn't want anything to jeopardize him, she needed his things too much.

"Do you want another bag?" Negi suddenly asked her and Ako's heart skipped a beat. Another bag? That would give her all she needed for a whole week! She looked up at him and nodded intensively. Negi grinned at her, "Then get up and against the wall." He said and Ako stumbled to her feet, quickly removing the rest of her clothes before she leaned forwards, placing her hands against the wall and opening herself up to him. This was a chance she couldn't waste. If she had to, she could call Akira and lie about having a headache.

"You know something Ako-chan?" Negi asked a full hour later as he sat down on the trash-can, looking down on Ako as she was putting her clothes on. The girl was currently holding tightly onto the two bags, cradling them to herself almost like a mother would cradle a baby. She looked up at him at his words.

"What?" She asked.

"Do you really want to stay here?" he asked, "In this shithole, where reality fucks you over daily. Is this what you want?" He asked her and Ako was taken aback when she saw him face, he looked concerned for her. Ako felt a lump in her throat now and looked down. She did want to leave, she hated this school, she hated that she had to spend her life feeling like a freak. She just wanted to inject the drugs into her veins and not have to care about this shitty reality ever again.

"The reason I'm asking." Negi continued, "Is that I know of a place where you could go." Ako blinked and looked up at her again. "You'll get drugs there and you won't even have to pay, you'll get away from all this shit and all you have to do is work there, do the same things that you do now." His eyes looked deep into her as he continued, "I know some people that need employees at the moment and they could definitively use someone like you."

Ako's heart was pounding wildly now, drugs and the chance to get away from here… it couldn't be real! But he said it… he told her that it was the truth.

"So what do you say?" he continued, "Do you want to leave this shit? Go somewhere where you'll be free of it all?" He smiled as he lit up a cigarette, "I can only give you this option tonight, are you in?"

"That…" Ako said before she faltered, "Where is it?" she asked him with a wondering look on his face, "What do I have to do there?"

"It's a good place," Negi insisted, "One where you'll get away; isn't that enough?" Negi gestured to the stinking alleyway. "What I can say though," he added, Is that you'll be doing pretty much the same things as you do now but you'll have Eva to look after you.

"Eva?" Ako asked.

"She would be your boss," Negi revealed, "she would look out for you and provide you with what you want. It's the same as here, only better; do you want to stay here?" He asked her and Ako looked down on the ground. He was right… she didn't want to stay here.

"I-I'll go…" she said after a few seconds "Where is it…?" she asked him and Negi smiled.

"Good move Ako-chan." Negi said with a no-nonsense tone, "Come with me then, I'll take you there."

* * *

_The next day_

"Zip it and listen!" Negi snapped into his cell phone, "You wanted me to get you one and I did. Don't start complaining about things that we never talked about!" Asuna cringed when she heard niisan's tone and decided to walk a little further away. Hurrying a few meters away she got to one of the ponds and looked down into it.

For a long time now niisan had been acting strange, Asuna was just a little kid, seven years old now, but she could see it. A year ago he had been different from how he was now. Before niisan had always had a kind smile on his face no matter what happened. He hadn't been like he was now; lately he had been like someone else.

Asuna splashed around a little in the water and felt the bad feeling in her again. It had come sometime after niisan had been beaten up and now it came all the time, it was as if she became empty inside. Her niisan was different these days, he was scary. Sometimes he looked like the boys who had bullied Sanji-kun in her class…mean and scary.

Now, as he stood a bit away and yelled in his phone, he had a look on his face that made the little girl scared. His brow was furrowed, he was biting his teeth together and his eyes were not like her old niisan's eyes at all. It was the eyes that scared her the most, she couldn't describe it any good but it was as if they were glowing with… she didn't know any good word for it but she didn't want it to be there. That was the second part of why she felt so bad, she didn't want to be so mean that she thought such things about her niisan, her niisan was the best person in the world.

He had always taken care of her and done everything for her. When they had lived with the foster parents who always screamed at each other he had held her when she became scared by their screaming, when he had been old enough he had taken her away from there and made sure that they could eat and have a home. She was just mean for wishing that niisan was different, especially now that he could pay for new clothes and toys for her, especially the hairbells she always wore nowadays.

She had wondered about how he had gotten so much money nowadays though, at first they had hardly been able to get food, now though they could afford anything. How had he done that? And also; was the money why he was so scary sometimes?

Asuna remembered one time at school when sensei had read a book in class about a crow that wanted to collect silver things. The crow had in the end stolen more and more silver, so much that his nest became too heavy for the branch and that it all had fallen into the river. She remembered what the crow had been saying all the time in the latter part of the book. "_More shiny things, more shiny things!" _Sensei had used a really scary voice when saying the crow's lines and Asuna had become really scared.

However the scariest part had been last night… she had dreamed that niisan had said that. Niisan had been flying all over the city, taking things from others and gathering them in their old apartment, then a storm had come and the apartment had fallen into the river. Asuna had woken up feeling all cold and when she had gone to niisan he hadn't woken up no matter how much she shook him.

Other things were strange too, Inu didn't talk with her like he used to do, he seemed like he was trying to avoid talking about some things. Especially when they talked about when he did at work, then he would always change the subject. Even at school things were strange, several of the teachers acted weird, almost like they were afraid of something. Of course; that was sometimes a good thing, Yashamaru-sensei had been a meanie before he started to change. But still...

"Hey hime." niisan said behind her and she yelped as she spun around and saw niisan behind her, he had put his cell phone away and was smiling crookedly at her. The old smile when he smiled with all his mouth was gone, now only the side where he wasn't scarred smiled. "Sorry about that," he said to her with an apologetic gesture, "Cellphones are a menace, always ringing when you don't want them to." He grinned as he ruffled her hair. Asuna gave her niisan a small smile; she was still feeling bad and couldn't do any more.

She just wanted Niisan to be as he was before.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

* * *

Dusk fell over Mahora and the students retreated to their dorms, abandoning the streets and leaving them wide open for other parts of society. Due to the nature of Mahora, it being a campus, this meant that the streets were practically deserted, all that now moved there were singular wanderers and criminals working their trade. Nowadays the former was nearly non-existent and the latter heavily reduced in magnitude thanks to the madman who was prowling the streets, searching for new victims.

As the cool evening wind came blowing the young man shivered and rubbed his hands together. These nights were cold as shit, even if he constantly was up and walking he still froze. He just wanted to be back at the HQ with some drugs but nope, the boss had ordered them out on the streets to keep an eye out for the serial killer. He kinda wished that the guy could do that himself.

Still, as he ran a hand down one of his earlobes, feeling the many piercings that went through it, he thought that that was something he'd never say to the man. He would be killed right off... the boss didn't tolerate people who messed up. Hell, he didn't even want to say it, he was too grateful he had even been given the gun. Not that he wanted to shoot people just for fun, more that he was happy that the boss had put this kind of trust in him.

Yeah he was pathetic... after all, pathetic was the only thing he knew how to be, his life had proven that. Thrown out by his parents, messed up at the only other place he could have stayed and now reduced to this, a thug working for drugs...

"Wake up." he suddenly felt a slap on his arm and looked to the side where Shiro was looking down the street. Someone was heading their way. Squinting his eyes he saw that it looked like one of the dealers he and Shiro had looked after. Good, he was still alive...

It was a kinda weird schedule they had put up, about one time an hour they randomly switched lookout place, jumping between the different dealer locations, but the boss said that is seemed like a good idea and the idea had stuck, now they patrolled Mahora in random patterns all night.

"Changing time then." he heard Shiro say but for some reason he held out an arm.

"Let's just wait a few seconds..." he said, for some reason he felt like they should watch this guy some more. Hiding in their alley they looked on as another figure slipped out of the shadows and made a quick wave with his hand.

"Damn I could use some..." the young man said to himself. His hands were shaking slightly and he longed for a good syringe filled with drugs as they saw the dealer head for the alley to deal with the customer. Craning his neck slightly he tried to peer into the alley but didn't see anything .

It was then that they heard the sudden yell from the alley and they both jumped to. The dealer! The young man and Shiro both broke into a sprint towards the alley and pulled out their guns, their hearts suddenly beating furiously. Was is the psycho? They reached the alley and ground to a halt in front of it, pointing their pistols inside it.

What they saw made them both sick. The dealer was lying on the ground, a large pool of blood having formed around it and the chest already carved open, they could see the fucking heart in the moonlight! Sitting astride on the dealer's stomach sat someone who had to be the psycho, he was dressed like a bum and was holding a large fucking kitchen knife in his hands, both he and the knife was covered in blood and he had turned to stare at them.

The sudden fear coupled with the tension of the last weeks made the young man stand still for a second before the sight of all the blood made it snap for him.

"Sick fucker..." he said with a trembling voice before raising the gun. "You sick fuckeeeer!" he screamed as he furiously pulled the trigger in a desperate attempt to get rid of the man. "Fucking die!" Shiro now raised his gun too and started to shoot.

The psycho was unable to get out of the bullets' path and before he could react the first bullet bit into his shoulder. With a scream he fell backwards and the thugs both pointed the guns at his prone body before unleashing another uncontrolled barrage at him.

Bang after bang echoed through the night and the psycho's body shook as bullet after bullet dug into him, those bullets who didn't hit him ricocheting off the asphalt and made sharp, screaming noises as the flew all around the alley. Trash cans rung as they were punched through and beer-bottles exploded with shrill crashes. It felt like they were firing at the fucker for eternity before they suddenly realized that there didn't come any more bullets out of their guns.

Breathing harshly as weeks of anxiousness finally had been unleashed the two gang-members lowered their guns and looked into the alley. The psycho was lying in a crumpled position, tangled up as he was in the dealer's body, and another blood of pool was quickly forming under him, slowly mixing with the dealer's blood. As the young man reloaded Shiro spoke up.

"Did we get him? Is he dead?" his friend said as he watched the young man head into the alley, kicking the plastic bag in his path to the side and noticing the bottle of bleach that rolled out of it.

"It's him at least... but..." the young man said before reaching the psycho and looked down at his face. Suddenly he raised his gun again and pulled the trigger again with a scream. Another bullet shot out of the gun and into the psycho's head, a small red hole appearing on the man's forehead. "Now he's gotta be dead." the young man said, breathing harshly.

"Good, let's get outta here. I don't wanna meet the cops." they both headed out of the alley, the adrenaline still pouring through them and making them run as fast as they could towards the hideout, desperate for the safety it gave them.

* * *

_The next day_

_"And in other news." the news reporter said, "The so called "cleaner killer" who's been terrorizing the Mahora campus for the last two months was early this morning found dead. Yukie?" the image shifted to a female reporter on the Mahora campus. In the background police sirens were flashing and a large crowd had gathered outside a side alley._

_"Yes," the woman said, "it was at three o'clock last night that the police received a distress call claiming they they had heard intensive gunfire near the female dormitories. Upon arriving there they found the body of yet another drug-dealer but they also found a man suspected to be the cleaner killer. The man was holding a bloody knife in his hands and had been killed by a massive barrage of bullets at close range. The police are still tight-lipped about who did this but many things suggest that this is the work of the criminal groups on Mahora..." _

The TV screen went black as Negi pressed the "off" key and looked back at the gathered gang-members. They had all gathered in the old warehouse when Negi had received a call from Saito, who was claiming that the thugs had found the killer and killed him. Negi had rushed there at once and was now debriefing his men with a large smile on his face.

"That's what I'm talking about guys." he said, slowly clapping his hands together, "Damn fine work, hopefully we won't have to deal with any more psychos again. And you two!" He pointed at the two thugs who had done the deed and they both started. "I got my eye on you, keep it up and there's more than just free drugs that awaits you. Those things include the best whores in Tokyo, enough money to get your own rides and a lot more..." he suddenly snapped his fingers and reached into his clothes before taking out a large wad of cash which he threw at them. "Here, just because I like you right now."

The worshiping looks he got he got made it all clear to the young man, he had them in the palm of his hand completely. He knew how it worked, that much he had leaned from growing up surrounded by crime. Reward good work in a grandiose way and make it seem like it's nothing, like you're giving them pittances. That way you will make them respect you even more and at the same time you won't loose any of their fear. Hell, that was how Fate had always worked and his best friend was one of Fate's men.

He knew that they feared him: he was currently standing in front of them with his long coat wide open and the gun on display hanging from his belt. He had made it a habit to remind them of the scar on his cheek by absently fingering it and Kotaro was right beside him at all times, holding the Desert Eagle in his hands.

"Now I run Mahora," he continued, letting his lips curve into a large smirk, "with the cops unable to do shit about the killer everyone knows that we did it." the men all murmured agreement, "Shut up!" he made them quiet down immediately, "That's good PR," he continued, "that's someone you wanna buy shit from. Any remaining dealers now work for me, if they bitch, beat them blind. The path to domination is nothing but a long straight line now. And by the way, anyone up for a fat bonus?" he asked and every single one of the thugs immediately snapped to attention as this.

"All of you?" he asked with a mild tone of surprise, "Keep that up will you, I got this café I want burned to the ground, the world tree café, double up if the owner is inside when you do it... And I do hope I don't have to mention that if you screw up you die." enjoying the silence that followed this statement he slapped his gun slightly, "Just a friendly reminder, you're not off the hook just because of this."

He looked back at Kotaro, "Roof." he said quietly and his friend immediately picked up on the clue and fired his gun skywards. The thugs all flinched at this, that gun gave them all bad memories. "Kotaro will take care of the details then," Negi continued, "I've got other things to do." With that he turned around and headed for the entrance, enjoying the roaring of his friend as he gave the thugs their orders. This would be the best yet, it was finally time for payback, tenfold such.

* * *

_Three days later_

The little girl sat in the large sofa and looked around in the opulent room, her eyes wide as she looked at the large curtains. It was obvious that she was spellbound by the room and even more so by the man in front of her, who was currently performing one magic trick after another.

"Because you see little princess," Albireo continued, making a single poker card split into three identical cards, "The world is all too often an illusion. Things we take for granted, how can we know they really are like that?" he placed a small coin on the table and put a glass over in before reaching under the table, covering the glass with his hand for just a second he then pulled out the other hand from under the table in which the coin now rested. Asuna didn't even breathe now and Albireo nudged her belly, making her squeal in protest.

From the window Evangeline and Negi were both watching Albireo entertaining the little girl.

"You're giving me bad conscience." Negi said dryly, "You're spoiling her better than I ever could." Evangeline chuckled at his statement and patted his shoulder.

"There there boya," she said with a voice of mock-comforting, "Do not fret," she continued, "We work in a business where taking care of people is everything, of course we have an advantage over you."

"I suppose." Negi muttered as he took a swig of his drink. "Anyway, that's not why I'm here. It's about Mahora."

"Oh?" Evangeline said, "How come? After all, our only stakes there are the recruits."

"Do you want more of them?" Negi asked, "A drug-ring isn't optimal for that stuff, not by far. That's what I've been thinking of lately."

"And we never expected it to be optimal." Evangeline said, "Optimal recruitment is too high profile in a place like that."

"An orderly and well behaved campus?" Negi asked, "Yeah I know, but that's about to change."

"Be careful now boya." Evangeline said, "Unless you have access to some very good source of information that kind of statement shows a dangerous hubris."

"Not hubris, confidence." Negi said, "That campus is completely rotten on the inside, nearly every tenth of it's students are on drugs, the board is more interested in public relations than doing their job and the local shops and cafés are breaking almost every law about how you're supposed to treat your employees there is. It's a house of cards and the whole cleaner-murder incident made it all painfully obvious. Dozens of students have already been pulled off the campus by their rich parents and if the trend continues Mahora will loose it's status totally."

"Are you really trying to bring about that kind of change of your own?" Evangeline said softly as she licked her lips. She couldn't help but find the young man, who seemed to take every possible situation and turn it to his advantage, very interesting. What he had done to Sakura only reinforced this interest, she did enjoy a rough time.

"Not on my own," Negi admitted, "it's already happening. That's also what I wanted Saito for. When the "new age" comes for Mahora I'm gonna be so deeply ingrained they can't get rid of me." Evangeline smiled sultrily at him.

"I must say that you've exceeded our expectations by far... boya..." she said his last name as if she was enjoying the sound of it and leaned in towards him. "I never thought that little brat we invited here a few months ago would grow into such a man." Negi suddenly swallowed, she was undressing him with her eyes and it unnerved him. Suddenly he felt like a small animal, one that was staring down the maw of a giant predator, one poised to strike. She looked as if she was devouring him, only the look in her eyes was enough to make him shiver. Still... fear wasn't his style. Instead he gave him a smirk of his own.

"Yes I can be quite surprising, can't I?" He said, "And you're in a special seat after all, usually those who underestimate me are gone by now."

"As has been proven." Evangeline said, "I must said, I get the feeling that it would be a good idea to tighten this partnership, don't you think that too? There's is, after all, _so much_ that we could offer each other."

Her voice had been reduced to a husky whisper now and the look she gave him couldn't be misunderstood, Negi almost felt like he was quivering from fear as much as excitement. Stealing a glance in Asuna's direction he noticed that Albireo was still entertaining her. Suddenly he felt a tug at his neck and looked back at Evangeline to see that she was currently gripping his silver necklace between her fingers and that a predatory gleam had appeared in her eyes.

He was fucked.

* * *

"You see little princess?" Albireo said as he yet again took out a coin from Asuna's ear and Asuna nodded eagerly, having listened to his talking with an enraptured expression, "Good, now then, what is this world made of?" He asked with a teacher-like tone.

"Illusions." Asuna said quickly and Albireo nodded.

"And what does that mean?" he asked her.

"That... nothing is really sure and that people will always think that it is sure." Asuna said after a second's deliberation.

"Full marks!" Albireo said with a smile as he gave her a piece of candy. He noticed in the corner of his eyes that his dear wife's hands suddenly lashed out and caught Negi-kun's necklace between her fingers. He had been wondering when it would happen, his dear wife's tastes and impulses never changed. "So... what do you have to do then?" he continued.

"Make illusions," Asuna said, "So if I have lots of candy everyone gets jealous but if I hide it in my backpack they won't be jealous because I've made an illusion."

"A++!" Al said and noticed how Evangeline was dragging Negi away, boy that kid was in for a ride. For a few seconds Albireo was envious of him, Evangeline's lips were never as sweet as the first time. "And how do you make illusions?" He said as he snapped his fingers, making a small colored band shoot out from them.

Now Asuna's brow furrowed as she started to think, "You... make people see what you want them to see?" She said uncertainly, "If I hide the candy I make them see only my backpack."

"Have you taken this test before?" Al asked Asuna with a shocked expression. "Or are you cheating?" Suddenly he narrowed his eyes and gave Asuna a mock-stern expression, "Do we have a cheater here?"

Asuna started to shake her hear quickly, "Nope!" she said quickly "I don't cheat, it's wrong to cheat!" Albireo sighed theatrically at this.

"What did I just say?" he said with a tormented voice. "What did I just say about illusions?"

"Huh?" Now Asuna didn't follow at all and looked at Albireo with a confused expression. Albireo leaned back in his chair and looked at Asuna.

"Make sure to take notes here little one," he said, "Cheating actually doesn't exist. That's a word that people have made up for something that doesn't exist. Were the cave-men cheating when they used fire to scare away tigers for example? The tiger is bigger and stronger than humans but the humans used their heads, they came up with new tricks to survive and to become strong. How's that different from this "cheating"?" Asuna now looked utterly dumb-struck.

"But... wait..." she said, a look of utter concentration spreading over her face, "But... no... it..." after a while she gave up. "I don't know..." she said with a tiny voice.

"Good." Albireo smiled widely at her as he lifted her from the sofa and put her in his lap. "Because there isn't any. You're a smart girl to see that. What happened was that after a while... those who were smart wanted to stay the smartest. They didn't want anyone to come and outsmart them and that's why they invented the word cheating, to forbid smart people from finding new ways of living."

"So then..." Asuna said slowly as she wrestled with this new concept. "Cheating is just a stupid word so smart people aren't gonna get to be smarter than the people who invented the word?" Albireo nodded at her and Asuna's eyes opened wide.

"But that's wrong!" she said, "Why can't people be as smart as they are just because some people want to be the smartest?"

"Now _that _is something that's been discussed for a long time." Albireo said, noticing that both Negi and Eva was gone and he grinned inwardly, poor poor boy. "However let's leave that for now, we'll get back to that some other time, I promise. Just know this though," he added mysteriously, "You've just taken the first step down the road of truth. Down the road that will let you see who the world really works."

Asuna nodded, feeling the mood Albireo had created and Albireo patted her head.

"Good, what do you say we take some more ice-cream?"

"I don't know..." Asuna said, "Niisan said that I'll ruin my appetite."

"Asuna..." Albireo said warningly and the little girl suddenly shone up.

"But if he doesn't know he'll think that I haven' eaten any!" she suddenly said, the little girl looked like Archimedes in the tub at that very moment, she almost looked like she wanted to scream "Heureka."

"Good girl!" Albireo grinned widely, he loved his kid.

* * *

Negi was terrified and aroused beyond words at the same time. Evangeline forced him backwards and his head hit the wall, making it spin. Before he could do anything she was upon him, one hand diving in under his t-shirt and the other caressing his neck as her mouth clasped down on his, her tongue diving into his mouth and ravishing him.

God she was skilled! Negi's legs felt like they turned to jelly and his heartbeat was echoing like a drum as he tried to take over, force himself back into her mouth. He used his superior strength to force his hands up to her face and pushed forwards, managing to get into her for just a second before he suddenly gagged. Evangeline now held a steel grip on his Adam's apple, making him loose concentration and loosing the headway he had gotten.

Evangeline reached under his arms and up to the back of his jacket, peeling it off him, and Negi's shoulders bent backwards as the heavy piece of clothing was pulled off him and landed on the floor. Evangeline stopped french-kissing him for just a moment and bulled back slightly, looking at him with mirth in her eyes.

The sight of her face was enough to make Negi attack again though, he pushed forwards again, capturing her mouth and locking her head by putting his hand behind her head. The other hand went in under her blouse and he clasped his hand on her breast, squeezing it roughly. The satisfaction he felt when Evangeline gave off a gasp of breath was enough to make him euphoric.

Making another push he managed to force her down on the stool that stood behind her beside the phone and he spread his legs wide, straddling her. Now it was his turn and he let go of her to attack her neck. Evangeline's hands clasped onto his back and pushed him closer as he let his tongue run up and down her beautiful neck, tasting her skin.

He let his second hand, now free from locking her head, travel downwards past her stomach and to her crotch, he could already feel it being moist but Evangeline's hand suddenly stopped him.

"Easy boy..." she said huskily and leaned into breathe softly into his ear, sending shivers down his spine, "Are you in a hurry?" she whispered before licking his ear and lifting the hand away from her. "We've got time." With that she suddenly twisted and Negi fell sprawling to the ground, landing on his back on the carpet. Before he could react Evangeline was straddling him and the roles were reversed.

"Just relax and enjoy the ride." Evangeline said before attacking him again with a deep kiss as she tore at his shirt. Negi's eyes widened when it tore in half, Evangeline ruining it in no time. The blonde beauty then dove down, kissing her way up from his navel towards his neck. It was when she reached his neck that Negi lost it. He reached up and tore at her expensive silk dress, trying to get it off. Evangeline sat up and allowed him to tear it down, exposing her chest which Negi immediately attacked.

Sucking and nibbling on her chest he felt how Evangeline's arms closed around him, holding him towards her. "There you go." She whispered softly, only further inflaming Negi's lusts. This woman, she was unreal and it only spurred him further. He kept attacking her, stroking his hands all over her and working furiously at her perfect breasts in a desperate attempt to sate himself somehow His breath came in gasps as he did this and his body trembled.

Evangeline eventually stopped him and leaned in to give him another kiss, her lips sat him aflame and his wish for the command only grew. He was desperate for her, he wanted to take her right here and now, sating himself on her, but Eva held the command with an steel grip now. Was this how desperation felt in bed?

Then, suddenly Eva bit down on him. Negi's eyes widened and he gasped loudly as he felt how Eva sucked his sensitive skin into her mouth tearing at it. His hands shot up to tear her away but he couldn't get her off him. Eventually Eva let go though, the woman smiling as she leaned back.

"Let us call this an "I Owe You", boya." she said as she fingered the large hickey that now adorned his neck. With that, she suddenly rose from him and pulled up the dress over the shoulders again. Brushing her hair quickly she left the hallway and left Negi on the floor, wide-eyed and with a raging hard-on. He stared after the woman and his eyes became stuck at the doorway she had exited through. As he raised his hand to the hickey he realized that he wanted her more than he ever had wanted Sakura and this time he didn't get it.

"_New arenas bring new challenges..."_ Albireo's voice echoed in this head as he remembered something the man had said a few weeks ago.

"Oh shit..." Negi realized that he didn't have a snowball's chance in hell.

* * *

_The next day_

He admitted it freely, he was near puking. As he sat with his knees to his chest inside the van he bit down on his fist, trying to stop the feelings inside his gut. He didn't have any problems with the psycho, that fucker deserved it. But this... the boss had ordered him and the others to go in and massacre the old man who ran this café, preferably by burning him alive. He couldn't do that!

The worst thing was that the boss' hitman had told that that he was supposed to go in the lead for this and now the others were waiting for him to give the command when the boss gave the signal. He was expected to take the lead in something he couldn't do even if he was in the back! What was he going to do?

As he sat inside the van, trying to stop himself from shaking to death, he realized that he wanted to run away. He felt just like he had that day when he had lost everything, when the only thing he had been able to hope for had fucked up totally. That time he had ran away, left that place he had hoped so much at and ended up in this. The difference is that this time the boss would find him and kill him if he did that. He didn't want to die!

This had captured him between the hammer and the anvil. The hammer was his fear, constantly hammering away inside him, and the anvil was the boss, a man who didn't accept screw-ups. What was he going to do? At this rate he would puke during the raid. He'd tear off the ski-mask and puke all over the place and the boss would have his hitman shoot him with that over-sized cannon of his. He wanted to cry...

"Hey!" He almost jumped out of his skin when Shiro poked him. With his hear pounding he looked to the side and saw his friend sitting with a large grin. The man was grinning like a madman and was nodding maniacally. "Take one you too." He held out a bag with small pills in it, no doubt speed or something, Shiro loved that. "Come on!" Shiro said, still grinning like that. "Gotta keep the adrenaline up!"

He stared at the bag and back to Shiro's grinning face. That fucker wasn't nervous at all! It had to be the speed, usually Shiro was a scaredy-cat...

"Oh what the fuck..." He felt like an idiot when he realized it .Of course! He reached for the bag and took out a few pills before stuffing them into himself, hoping they would help. Furiously swallowing them he started to wait for the release the pills would give him. _"Come on, come on come on come on..."_ he stated to chant mentally, desperate for the pills' help. After a moment he looked out through the back windows and suddenly his heart skipped a beat.

The boss just came out through the back door!

That was the signal they had been told to look out after that the boss would give when the place was empty. It was time... he started to hyperventilate, feeling like puking again and for a second he just wanted to run away. Then the rush came, his breathing slowed down as the nervousness ran off him like water as the speed spread through him. What was he so nervous about? He could do this... he had whacked the psycho, the boss trusted him with this! He could do it!

"Time to kick ass!" he hissed, high on the speed, as he kicked the door open and jumped out. The others were behind him and he suddenly felt cool like hell as he marched onto the café. This was it, this was the real fucking deal! Now he was the fucking Yakuza death-squad leader! Wild-eyed and with clenched teeth he kicked the door open, marching inside as he tore out his gun from under the jacket.

"All right you fuckers hands up right fucking now!" He screamed, pointing the gun at the people inside. There were three of them all in all, a fat young man who was cleaning the desk, an old man by the register and finally the boss who was mopping the floor. The other two men both froze when he and the others burst in and their eyes widened in fear. The boss also froze but his face, which was turned away from the others, showed a smirk.

The young man gritted his teeth. "Didn't you hear me you fucks!" he screamed with spit shooting out of his mouth, Now they all raised their hand quickly, the boss mimicking the moves of his employer, the boss had a plan with all this. The old man raised his hand and the fat young man dropped his mop and raised his hands too before he backed towards the wall, eyes wide with fear as the young man marched up to him.

"Get away form the register!" the young man screamed and the other guys ran up to the register, tearing the old man and his fat toady away from it and throwing them out on the floor. "Get to the wall with your hands on your head and on your knees of I'll fucking kill you! Empty the register." The last words he said to the others. As the old man and his employees all quickly got to their knees and put their hands on their heads the other guys immediately opened the register to grab the money.

The young man, however, marched up on the old café-owner and kicked him in the head, his boot crashing into the old man's face and sending it into the wall.

"Where's the safe!" The adrenaline was pumping though his head and he felt like he wanted to crush the man's head by stomping on it. The boss was only a few feet from him and he would show him that he could do this! "Where's..." he picked the old man up and saw how his nose was crushed and the blood streaming down his face, "...The fucking safe!" These kinda places always had a safe, everyone knew that, and he was gonna loot it!

The old man only shook his head however and now the young man gritted his teeth so hard it felt like they might crack. The old fuck really had the balls to deny them? Balls... with a grin the young man kneed the café-owner in the balls, making him collapse in pain and hit the ground again. Looking for something more to attack he suddenly say the fat guy, this guy was already blubbering, crying like a little baby. With a manic grin he attacked him.

"Where!" he screamed and the fat guy immediately caved, not having a tenth of his employer's guts.

"I'll show you!" he whined, "I'll show you, just don't hurt me!" he was wildly pointing in the direction of the kitchen and the young man threw him to the side and into one of the others.

"You take it, kill him if he dies any-fucking-thing!"

"No!" the old man protested, trying to stop the robbers from getting their hands on the result of all his hard work. It was a bad move on him part though, now the young man snapped. He raised his gun and squeezed the trigger as hard as he could. With a deafening bang the bullet shot out of the gun and impacted with the old man's stomach. Another scream of pain filled the air and the young man whirled around, pointing the gun at the fat guy.

"Go!" He screamed as high as he could. "A fucking word outta you and I shoot!" The fat guy was pale as a ghost now and tried to back off but the other two guys held him hard. He changed the grip in his gun, holding the barrel, and clubbed the fat guy in the face. "What are you waiting for?" he yelled at the others, "Move it!" As the others pulled off with the fat guy the young man returned to the old man, starting to kick him again.

The boss wanted pain? The boss wanted this guy to suffer? Then he fucking would suffer! He'd kick the old fuck to a red spot on the wall! The old man tried to protect himself, holding one of his spindly arms up to block the kicks and the other to his gut he hod now crouched into fetal position. But his boots were heavy and after having managed to kick away the blocking arm he proceeded to stomp on it as hard as he could, breaking it over and over again. It was then that he heard someone yell behind him.

"Hey!" he looked up and saw the boss dash out through the exit. With his head still fucked up by the drugs he immediately dashed after and raised his gun again. When he came out he was just into time to see the boss disappear around a corner and his gun shot up, sending a swarm of bullets after him. He soon stopped and headed quickly inside again, just in time to see the others come out from the kitchen with a bag of cash in their hands. He could see the unmoving legs of the fat guy sticking out from behind the counter as he tore the bag away from them and looked down in it.

Holy shit that was a lot of money! The fucker was rich! Looking up he remembered this final part of the plan the hitman had hammered into them and nodded at the others. They all knew what awaited now.

"Burn the place." he said and Shiro came up with the large canister of petrol he had taken along. Grinning as he did so Shiro begun to pour out the petrol all over the place. The old man looked up now and noticed what they were doing. With his arm crushed and a gunshot-wound in the gut he tried to crawl away but the young man hurried up to him and kicked him again. That fucker would pay for trying to screw them over! The old man collapsed with a yell of pain and the young man gestured for the others to come up.

"Hold him up!" he hissed and two of the guys immediately picked the old man up, holding him under his arms. With a kick at the knee he made the leg bend backwards, a sickening crack accompanying it as he hit the old man's knee with all he had. Ignoring the old man's screams he sent another kick at the other leg, breaking it too.

"Throw him into the kitchen and turn the gas hobs on!" he hissed, "Let the old fuck burn there, we'll fucking deep fry him!" the old man was in too much pain to do anything other than cry out in pain as they dragged him over into the kitchen and threw him to the floor before turning on every gas valve they could find. "Hey!" he screamed to Shiro, who was finishing the touches on the petrol drenching. His friend looked at him and he pointed at the old man. "Petrol, here." he said and Shiro hurried up to him and emptied the last of the petrol on the old man.

They all hurried outside and as they did this Shiro fished out a Molotov-cocktail out of his bag which he held out to him. "You do the honors." Shiro giggled as he fished up a lighter which the young man took before lighting the Molotov up and throwing it into the café as they all ran out of it.

The entire place took fire at once the windows shattering and a shock wave of heat throwing them to the ground. Getting to their feet they all whooped at the sight. Now the entire lower level of the building was a raging inferno, the young was man sure that he could hear the screams from inside. They all ran away from the conflagration and leaped into the van, speeding away.

A few blocks away Negi had just finished calling the police when he heard the explosion and, a short while after, saw the plume of smoke rising towards the sky. His face split in a giant dark smile at the sight and he felt in incredible joy rising up within him. Finally! He started running towards the place again, he had to see this!

When he reached the site he as greeted by the most beautiful sight he had ever seen. The café was consumed with fire, already beyond any rescue, and the old man who had made two full years of his life hell itself as dead! He slowly walked up towards the place and felt like screaming with joy.

So it begun... this was the real start. The final ties with his past life was now cut! He was free of the last of those chains! His old life burned away in the fires of the café and now he was the king of Mahora's drug-world. But he was not done yet, not by far. This was the start of his golden age, the age where he'd rule!


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

* * *

Mahora was a changed campus these days, no one could deny it even if they wanted to. These last years had seen changes that no one could have predicted, many of these had been for the worse.

The decay had started eight years ago with the infamous "cleaner murder" that had prowled Mahora for months, killing people in an incredibly bestial way. When his victims had all turned out to have one thing in common, this being that they all were drug-dealers, the fact that drug-use was rampant at Mahora had been dragged out into the light.

This was coupled with the sudden rumors that the drug-dealers were planning the kill the psychopath, and the police's response, which was putting out officers to seek for eventual vigilantes instead of devoting them to hunting for the murderer. These things caused intense clashes between the student union and board of directory. The former criticized the police for their actions and believed that this only further endangered the students of Mahora. The latter tried to silence them, concerned for the public image of the school and fearing that it would be tarnished due to the students' actions.

These fights eventually took a turn for the worse when the head of the student union was threatened with expulsion unless he backed down from his current position. The head's response had been to wire himself during the meeting and send the tape to the newspapers. When asked about this later he had said that he did this because he could not compromise with his principles, justice had to be done.

The result however, had been chaos.

First the cleaner murder had turned up dead, executed by the drug dealers, and the police had become ridiculed and heavily criticized when a group of drug-dealers could do what they couldn't Then, thanks to the tape, the board of directory had been accused of corruption, leading to several resignations from it and a giant shift of power as a series of new people were put on it. Finally one of the cafés of Mahora had become the victim of an incredibly brutal attack where the owner and one of his employers had been murdered and the café burned down.

These tragedies shook the academy to the foundations and Mahora's reputation for safety and cleanness had been annihilated in no time at all. The incompetence of the police became evident for all. This had opened Mahora wide to the wave to criminality that hit it. Like jackals the criminals of Tokyo had swarmed the place as Mahora's veil of stability was gone. Within only a year the situation in Mahora was worse than ever before, the criminality had spiked and was for a while worse than most of Tokyo's as the criminals saw how ripe for plucking the city was..

In this wave of criminality many of Mahora's students left the campus, especially the upper-class families that had been the lifeblood of the academy due to their generous donations and good reputation. The result was a school riddled with criminality, drug-use and economic difficulties. Compared to how things had been only a few years ago the differences were unbelievable.

It was only after years of struggling that this downward spiral seemed to have ended, leaving a seemingly desolate Mahora in it's wake. Many of its cafés and stores had closed down, having been ruined by robberies and lack of insurances. It's prestige was gone, sullied by the exposition of the corruption in the board and the terrible crimes that had been committed there. The number of students had been reduced by almost sixty percent, forcing several of the smaller faculties to close down. All in all, the Mahora that had been was gone.

However not all was dark in these years, there were those who still fought. One of these were a young man named Negi, the sole survivor of the horrible robbery that had ended in the death of his employer and workmate. He refused to back down and let Mahora be destroyed. Indeed, it was what he sparked that came to define the new Mahora, entertainment.

He claimed that drug-use was so wide-spread due to the students sitting holed up in their rooms instead of being out and doing things and he meant that there was where you'd have to start. The economy for this endeavor would come from two directions. First: the insurance money from the destruction of the café which the widow of his employer, Chiyo, gave him when he told her about his plan to rid Mahora of the people who had caused her husband's death. Second: a generous grant given to him by the Mahora board of directory, which was now run by Serizawa Saito, former head of the students union and a man with genuine interest in seeing Mahora live on.

With this money he started up a permanent nightclub in Mahora, something that had been unthinkable to the previous board but fully approved of by the current. It immediately became a success, the students flocking to the oasis of security that the club gave them. Negi wouldn't accept any criminals there, he even managed to coerce several of the delinquent students to work as bouncers, instantly throwing out anyone who tried to sell drugs or anything like that.

It was a strange solution to the problem, one that no one had heard of before, but it seemed to work. The first club prospered, somehow not being affected the the troubles of Mahora, even aiding the police in their work by actively listening for worthwhile information about the crime on Mahora and informing the authorities if they heard anything. This club, White Lighting, was followed by others all over Mahora and Negi's tireless efforts were lauded all over the school as he, by these clubs, established areas where crime simply did not reach, somehow these places were untouched by crime.

Obviously, this made Negi's business highly suspect to the police, who didn't believe in coincidences. The Mahora Police Department currently was fighting a long string of total failures and it's own inability to deal with the crime-wave, they eventually took Negi in for questioning, not believing that he could have succeeded that well on his own and that he was involved with the criminals that tormented the campus. The young man was questioned roughly and harshly, the police hoping to shake the truth out of him, even going so far as to insinuate that he had somehow been involved in his employer's death.

The young man kept calm throughout the hearings though, answering their questions with a calm and steady voice. When he, later on, was asked about the hearings he had given his explanation as to why he took it with such equanimity.

_"I can't do anything about it, people like me won't even get a break."_ When asked what he meant he had elaborated. _"The problem is that I am from the slums, I can't escape it, that's where I grew up, where most of my life has been and to these people that's enough. That's how it's always been; people like them, who grow up in good families and secure economy etc, have always looked amongst the lower classes when they need a criminal to punish and that hasn't changed at all, only that now they dress it up as criminology and call it a science. Poor living conditions, crime and drugs around you, being poor, lacking good role-models, that's all true with me and that makes me suspect number one."_

On the question what he believed himself he said this:_ "Make no mistake, I came from the gutter, I came from the shit-end of life. I've seen things you can't imagine, heard things you wouldn't believe. This scar," _he had pointed at the large scar on his chin, _"I got from some souped-up junkies looking for quick cash that stabbed me, I got my limp there too. I've been on the wrong side of a gun many times, seen people die in gunfights, you name it."_

_"I've lived in hell all my life." _He continued, his eyes mournful, _"But I don't want to be there. I've thought about it, perhaps I might as well start committing crimes and all that but I don't. Because back home right now my little sister is waiting for me." _he had paused there and taken a deep breath, _"I don't know anything about my parents and I guess I never will but I know that I have one relative, that's her. She's all I've got and I won't abandon her, I'll never accept having to look her in the eyes and say "I'm just like those lowlifes who mugged you", never! My sister will have a good childhood no matter how hard I must work. For her sake I've taken the commuter across half of Tokyo for four years, taken night classes to get some education and worked overtime every single day at the café. The café where a good man employed me without any hesitation and gave me a chance to live honestly!"_ at that point the young man had been yelling and his eyes had started to mist up, the agitation too much for him.

_"I've done everything to be like you people, the guys who can take holidays, who can buy decent clothes instead of second-hand rags! Who's homes aren't stinking of puke and drugs since it was a crack-house before you moved in! I never thought I'd get this chance either, but thanks to Saito-san and Chiyo-san I can build something here, something to live on and a way to..."_ he had shaken his head and waved his arms, trying to find the words, _"To give back what Mahora's given me. And when I do it, their "criminology" draws the conclusion that I'm a crook since a slum-kid can't succeed in normal ways."_ these words were spat out.

_"I've seen this happen dozens of times,_" he continued, _"seen people trying to get up that's pushed down again by these guys."_ his finger now went to the police house behind him, indicating the building, _"But still, every criminal in the slums can't keep me from getting me and my sister a better life and I'll be damned if I let these guys do it!" _Swinging his arms in front of him in a rejecting gesture before he forced his way between the journalists, the young man had touched the hearts of near all of Mahora, being held up as a hero and an role-model for what Mahora had to do while the police now became universally despised both for it's incompetence and it's unfairness.

Eight years exactly after the fire-bombing of the café, Mahora had blossomed again, only very differently. The streets where calm and stillness and reigned whenever students did not hurry along them were now seemingly trembling. A vibrant energy was in the air, a trembling, giddy sensation of expectation and eagerness. The students who now hurried along the streets, the hour far too late for classes, were almost bursting with eagerness, their plain uniforms replaced with the fashionable and the modern styles of Harajuku and Ginza.

As they hurried towards the parts of the campus that once had been avoided and seen as unsafe the trembling increased and soon a thumping noise could be heard, almost as if the campus' heart was beating rapidly, eager for what lay ahead. Soon the large buildings that were their goal could be seen, large warehouses where the windows next to the roofs were filled with brilliant and dancing lights. The thumping was even louder now, melodic and fast beats that seemingly beat in chorus with the eager students' hearts.

As they reached the doors of the building they were quickly examined by a pair of burly guards, both of them on the lookout for trouble, before they were let inside. When the doors opened a shock-wave of fast, adrenaline-packed music and wild lights crashed against them and the students rushed inside, the atmosphere overwhelming them and ensnaring them in rapturous abandon.

The entire place was shivering from the loud music, the giant hall, easily capable of holding hundreds of people, was filled to the brim with people, with music and with lights. A wild sea of people was currently seething inside, dancing to the beat of the music and loosing themselves in the euphoria of the night. Around the large steel-pillars that held up the roof small islands of stillness could be found in the shape of bar-desks where drinks were poured, paid for and emptied with incredible speed, go-go-dancers swirling around on platforms only a few feet above the heads of the bartenders.

Throughout the giant hall the beat was pounding, summoned by the DJ at the front, a bleach-blond man with piercings all around his ears and red paint striping his cheeks and bare torso, giving him a tiger-like appearance as he swirled around, his hands dancing over the controls and unleashing the beat on the madly dancing party-goers.

Further up, in what had once been the foreman's office, the sole island of peace and quiet existed. Protected by sound-proofed and shock-dampened roof, floor and walls was a luxurious office, filled with proofs of its nightclub heritage despite the silence, most notably the one-way window that filled one of the walls, showing the seething mass of people only a few meters from them.

"I call and raise ten," a man with black and white clothes, from the heavy boots and the rough jeans to the white t-shirt and the decorated leather bands that circled his wrists and with a black long-coat that hung from his chair. Scars covered his arms and his bleached hair hung down across his eyes and spilled over his pierced ears

"I think I will have to fold," the second man, this one a blonde with well-combed hair, immaculate suit and a pair of thin reading-glasses resting on his nose.

"Same 'ere." the third man growled, his hoarse voice, rough looks and wild hair at odds with the designer suit he was wearing. As he took a mouthful of his drink he glanced to the side at the fourth.

This man sat silently, watching his cards was an intense look on his face. His cold eyes almost looked as if they wanted to burn a hole in the cards as he absently fingered a large scar going across his chin, ending right before his red hair. The three other men sat silently as they waited for him to make him move, all of them silent. There was no questioning that it was this man who made the decisions in this small group.

"I call." he said eventually, his smooth voice almost visibly cutting through the tensions in the room. Pushing in his chips he looked intently at the first man before they both showed their cards. The final man smirked as she saw that yet again he had won. "You're never learning, are you?" He asked the man as he collected his winnings.

"Not really." the first man grinned in embarrassment as he scratched the back of his head. The second man sighed now and shook his head, taking off his glasses to rub his eyes.

"It begs the question how you survived up until now in you can't ever learn from your mistakes." he said with a snobbish tone. The first man shrugged now.

"Mostly that I can take a beating." he said, "Even from psycho girls with Tyson-hooks." he muttered after that, making the other man raise their eyebrows.

"Now THAT one begs for an explanation." the fourth man said, wondering what his secretive lieutenant meant by that. Even though the man had worked for him for over eight years now he knew far less that he would have liked about him. The first man started now and realized what he had said, shaking his head he tried to pull out.

"N-nothing, forget it." he said hurriedly, trying to smooth it over, "Another game?" he asked man winced when he saw the others' looks.

"Try as you might," the blond, bespectacled said, "If you have, accidentally or not, revealed point A, you are obligated to reveal the rest. Half-revelations are not acceptable, would you not agree Negi-san?" he looked at his employer, the red-headed man, who nodded.

"Despite the jargon, couldn't have said it better myself Saito. Kotaro?" he turned to the third man, who currently was giving the black-clothed man a predatory look over his glass.

"Yeah..." Kotaro grinned, "So come on Keitaro, spill it all now." Keitaro swallowed now, realizing that he was screwed. Eventually he sighed.

"Fine." he said with a defeated voice, "but don't judge me on this, right?" the others just smirked at him. "It was about ten years ago now," Keitaro began "I was trying to get into Toudai back then."

"What?" Kotaro suddenly exclaimed with his voice filled with mirth, "You, Toudai? You're even stupider than me for fuck's sake!"

"Zip it." Negi said calmly, making Kotaro shut up and with a nod of his head Negi urged Keitaro to continue.

"It's..." the man continued, "It's stupid but when I was about five I made a promise with a playmate of mine, a girl, about going to Toudai when we got older. She said that if a couple that loved each other went to Toudai together they would live happily ever after." at this Saito sighed.

"Oh my god, I see where this is heading," the man said with the exasperated voice he got when he dealt with stupidity, "And that legend is not even tied to Tokyo university but to the old capitol of Molmol, which name is pronounced Toudai as well even though you spell it differently."

"Really?" Keitaro said before falling silent. "Wow..." he eventually said with a laugh, "Perhaps that's why I fucked up so bad."

"Don't tell me you..." Kotaro asked with an incredulous expression.

"Yeah." Keitaro sighed, "I did. The next fifteen years I was obsessed with getting in there, studied like crazy and took the entrance tests time and time again. But, well, I failed."

"And... the psycho girl with Tyson-hooks?" Negi asked, noticing that Keitaro was trying to sneak away from it. Keitaro sighed here.

"Thing is that my parents threw me out after the second failure to get in." he said, "And the only place I could think of where I could live after that was my grandmother's inn."

"Your grandmother's... for fuck's... Fail!" Kotaro laughed at this and Keitaro shrugged.

"That's me," he admitted freely, "I sucked back then, no friends, no gf, nothing. I had spent the last fifteen years wanting to get into Toudai even though my grades were the worst possible. I suppose that my folks tired of feeding me and threw me out."

"Keep going." Negi said, curious on where this would lead. Keitaro took a sip of his beer.

"Well." he said, "I did get to the inn ok, only that it had become a female dormitory since I last was there." Now Kotaro howled with laughter and didn't stop until Negi threw a poker chip at him. "That's not the sucky part!" Keitaro said, grinning with an embarrassed look on his face, "I didn't see that and since I was tired after the trip I decided to take a soak in the hot springs. Guess who waltzes in?" Kotaro fell off the chair now, clutching his stomach. "And even better, she was both a hottie AND nearly blind. But it gets better! She thought I was her friend and asked me if her boobs had gotten bigger. It was about there I tried to sneak out but then she puts on her fucking glasses!" Not only Kotaro but even Saito and Negi was laughing now, the latter fighting to hold back his laughter.

"Guess who got beaten within an inch of his life?" Keitaro asked dryly, "The fact that my aunt came to check what the noise was about probably saved me from dying. Turned out that my grandma wasn't even there, she had gone on a trip around the world... and left the inn for me to take care of!"

"What?" Saito blurted out now, his voice filled with mirth. Keitaro nodded.

"Don't ask me what the crazy hag was thinking." he said, "I landed the job as manager for that place outta nowhere and not even the girls living there could object, gran's word was law."

"Wait, wait." Negi said here, "So you, the guy with about zero experience with girls and who had failed in everything earlier suddenly lands the job as manager of a girls' dorm!" Even Negi was laughing openly now and Keitaro nodded.

"So that's how I set a new world record on the "what the fuck" meter..." he said.

"Keep going." Negi said and Keitaro rubbed his neck.

"Well... as said, I started to try to balance taking care of the dorm and my studies..."

"And peeping!" Kotaro added, "'cause if ya say that you didn't try t' peep like shit you're gonna have to die." Keitaro only shook his head though.

"Couldn't, the girls were psycho even if they were hot, one of them even carried around a fucking sword and if I tried anything... kching!" Keitaro made a sound illustrating how a sword was drawn. "And that hottie I told you of?" he continued, "She punched me into orbit as soon as I tried anything." Keitaro had a dazed look on his face as he remembered. Eventually Kotaro snapped his fingers in front of his face and brought him back to reality.

"You still with us?" Kotaro asked. Keitaro nodded and swallowed.

"Sorry, bad memories." he said, however Negi noticed a slight reddening on his face. "Anyhow," Keitaro continued, "It was pervert-Auschwitz. Especially that girl, as said, she punched like Tyson if I got caught. But I kept going, at least until it was time for the third try for Toudai..." Keitaro giggled here, an unsteady sound of desperation.

"And the thing is that I really thought it would work out this time." he said, "I had managed to get along with the girls pretty nicely and thanks to some pieces of evidence I had gotten while talking with them and so on it almost looked like that Tyson-girl was the one I had promised with when I was a kid. We had started to get along pretty good and it wasn't impossible it would have worked out between us. Hell, I even got a better result than I expected on the mock test."

"But you failed?" Kotaro asked and Keitaro nodded.

"Not only that," he sighed, "The girl pointed out that since she was three years younger than me she would have been only two when I made that promise, so it was impossible. I failed, she got in, only lead I had ever had about where that girl could have been was lost. Epic fail." Keitaro leaned back now. "I ran away after that," he said, "I was planning to take a trip to Kyoto to clear my head but I got mugged and ended up at Mahora, broke. One night some guy there offered me a shot to clear my head and after that it took about a month before I hung with the Mahora guns."

"Now I get why you're an emo." Kotaro said, blinking. Even Saito nodded.

"I must say that in it's own way your story is like a Greek tragedy," the former student, now lawyer, said "the weaknesses of man and the machinations of fate destroys him."

"My god..." Negi said, "That story could make a rock cry." the red-headed man dug in his pockets and took out a set of keys. Picking one of these off the key-ring he slid it over to Keitaro. "This is what we do, take the Jaguar and go to Al, get laid and we'll never mention this again. Deal?" Keitaro blinked now, not expecting this. However he wasn't one to say no to the boss' generosity and quickly scooped up the key, however Negi still held his grip on it. "Only..." he said, "be back before ten tomorrow, I'm planning to deal with some things tomorrow and want you all here."

"You got it." Keitaro said, nodding quickly. Negi let go of the keys and Keitaro got up and left immediately. Kotaro looked after Keitaro with a sour glare as the leather-coat wearing man disappeared down the stairs and into the crowd.

"Why does he get freebies?" He asked sourly as he looked back at Negi. Negi, who currently was lighting a cigarette, looked up at Kotaro at this.

"Because I said so." he said evenly, "I already know your past and if he's cutting himself tomorrow he'll be useless. You want to get laid, there's a thousand stupid bitches about twenty meters away." Kotaro grumbled now but got up and left the office as well, heading for the dance floor. Saito looked after him as he left, one eyebrow raised.

"I assume that "tomorrow" means that you are planning to deal with the White Dragons tomorrow?" he eventually asked Negi, referring to a small gang of criminals that had started to sell drugs all over Mahora. Operating out of the slums they had managed to set up a large ring in only a few weeks. Negi only took a sip of his beer at this and Saito shook his head. "Another dozen people for the river then." he concluded, "You are incorrigible sir, ever since the café you've gotten more and more violent."

"Is there a problem with that?" Negi asked calmly, looking at Saito, who shook his head.

"None at all and if it was I wouldn't tell you." he told his superior quickly, "Only... the café, I must ask. Why was it necessary to burn your former employer alive? I mean, what good was that?"

"To feed fire with." Negi said, "If it fed nothing else, it fed my revenge. He had pissed on my dignity, and employed me for slave-wages, smirked at my failures, sneered at my efforts, spat on my home, insulted my kin, cheered for my enemies, and for what reason? I'm a slum-dweller!" The last words were spat by Negi as he stood up.

"Haven't a slum-dweller got eyes?" He asked, "Haven't they got hands, organs, a body, senses, affections, passions? Doesn't slum-dwellers eat the same food, get hurt by the same weapons, suffer from the same diseases, cured by the same means, get hot and cold from the same winter and summer as you "normal people"! If you stab us, don't we bleed? If you tickle us, don't we laugh? If you poison us, don't we die? And if you fuck with us, aren't we gonna take revenge?" He now yelled at Saito, who was looking at him with open eyes.

"We're like you in everything else, then we'll be like you in that." Negi continued, "If a slum-dweller robs one of you, don't you take revenge with your "police"? And if one of you take a piss on us and enslaves us, what should we do, by your example? Why revenge. That fucker taught me everything I know about selfishness, greed and punishment! I swore that somehow I'd outdo my teacher, and I did!" At this Negi sat down again and took a deep swig of his beer. He glanced at Saito, who took off his glasses now and rubbed his eyes.

"That was "the Merchant of Venice", was it not?" Saito asked, "Act 3, Scene 1. Shylock's monologue with some changes. I'm impressed." he nodded towards his superior, not having expected it at all.

"If I'm claiming to take late night classes I might as well read up a little," Negi chuckled now, giving him a wry smirk. Unlike Keitaro and Kotaro Saito was an educated, intellectual man, one where Negi could indulge in things that he could not otherwise, intellectual humor being one of these things. "It would be embarrassing if someone called me on it. Besides, there's actually some pretty nice things in classic books."

"Such as?" Saito asked and Negi shrugged.

"Well there is this book I'm reading now, "120 days of Sodom"," he said, "Those guys even make ME sick. I didn't know people had that nasty fetishes back in the eighteenth century."

"Of course, the author IS the man they named sadism after." Saito said at this. He knew of that book, knew and liked it. "And Marquise de Sade was thrown into prison for what he wrote."

"Okay cool." Negi said, "Anyhow, I want you along tomorrow too." Now Saito tensed. He blinked at his employer's words and suddenly swallowed. Did Negi expect him to come along out on the field? What was this? Negi gave him one glance before explaining.

"I hope there's no problem, is it?" he asked, his voice now frigid. Saito quickly shook his head and Negi nodded. "Thought so, now piss off and get some sleep, I want you here by ten tomorrow." Negi pointed at the door and Saito left at once, the man swallowing again as he left. The only one left now was Negi who took a last swig of his drink. It was time for Saito to get some blood on his hands anyway.

* * *

Negi stretched as he walked along the path leading up to his house. It wasn't too late, about midnight, so he'd get enough sleep before he had to get up. Also, he preferred his bed at home by far compared to the couch at his office. Also... there was other reasons for going home. He smiled wryly as he reached the door and pulled out his keys. Negi loved this place where he lived now, thanks to his new-found wealth he had managed to afford a house in the residential area that bordered on Mahora.

The building was not only above but beyond the vomit reeking apartment in the slums he had left behind. It was large and spacious, newly built and the kind of place where you'd usually find politicians or high-class lawyers live. It was perfect for what he wanted his home to be, a luxurious palace.

After all, he thought as he climbed the staircase, that was the kind of place needed to give his angel what she deserved. Stopping outside one of the doors, the door decorated with hearts and a name-plate with the name "Asuna" on it in calligraphy, he could hear voices from inside. He smiled wryly realizing that she must have friends over. Hurrying over to the mirror that hung nearby he gave himself a quick check. Yep, nice and clean, running his fingers through the hair to give it one last dash of unruliness he walked quietly up to the doorway. Suppressing his grin he pushed the door open, immediately leaning against the doorway with a slight smile on his lips.

Inside a group of junior high school girls were sitting on a ring on the large bed, chatting happily. The sound of the door opened though and Negi was deeply satisfied when he noticed the looks on many of the girls' faces when they saw him. The sight of him standing in the doorway, leaning against the door-frame with a smile on his lips, unruly hair and perfectly muscled body, he knew it was something that many of Asuna's friends longed for every time they came to her house. Her incredibly handsome older brother.

"Ah..." one of the girls, a lean girl with athletic build and large eyes said when she saw him, her eyes widening "N-Negi-san..."

"Still up at this time I see." he said softly, making sure to not use the harsh tone that he usually spent his days using. "Very well," he clapped his hands, "I know that you have a lot to talk about girls but it's getting late, I think you better go home now." He fired of a dazzling smile towards the girls and noticed that many of them hadn't listened. Damn he was sexy, they lost their minds!

Asuna only sweatdropped though. His sister, now fifteen years old, had grown so much that it was hard to recognize her at times. She had bloomed now, growing in all the right places and becoming a beautiful young woman, her curves were just right, sitting in all the right places and balancing between petite and voluptuous perfectly. As Negi had suspected, her fiery hair and different-coloured eyes only reinforced that beauty, giving her an exotic and unique flair that only made her all the more desirable.

Also, he made sure that she always got only the best and therefore she was currently wearing a beautiful and fashionable set of clothes. Currently she was wearing a tight red blouse that hugged her figure nicely and a short black leather jacket over it. Below the blouse sat a black miniskirt that served to accentuate her long smooth legs and her lips were painted with a light lipstick, giving them a sensual tone and her eyes accentuated by a dash of eyeliner, only further reinforcing the beauty of her eyes. Negi saw that Asuna had learned Eva's lessons of dressing well, she was beautiful, a true princess.

Also, judging from the exasperated look on her face she saw straight through his little charade. Still, it wasn't for her he showed off. He looked at the rest of the girls again.

"Well?" that one word broke the spell on most of them and they all got up, sliding off the bed and saying goodbye to Asuna, as they passed the doorway many of them bowed slightly to him, trying to hide their blushing cheeks. Negi favored them with a small smile each and when they all had left he looked inside the room again. Asuna was currently giving him a glare that could kill.

"Geez..." she grumbled as she slid off her bed, "Why do you always have to do that, It's embarrassing."

"Do what?" Negi asked, his face the picture of innocence, "It's dark, your friends should get home before it gets any later." Now he could almost see the veins on Asuna's forehead.

"You know what I mean!" she said, "What's the deal with you standing there looking like a gigolo every time you do it? Really, what's the deal Negi?" That was one of the more recent things about her, she had started to use his name more and more, the old "niisan" having slowly fallen into disuse. Still, Negi didn't really mind. He liked the sound of her saying his name, especially when she was worked up about something.

"And how would you know how a gigolo looks?" He asked, a stern look on his face and Asuna only sighed.

"Whatever..." she muttered before turning towards her wardrobe. When she reached it she took her pajama shirt off one of the shelves before she spun around and threw a stuffed animal at his face. "Get out you hentai!" Negi laughed as he fled out into the hallway, rubbing his head where the animal had hit.

In the later years his princess had changed and he couldn't help but delight in it. Not only that her body had matured, she had also become much more fierce, much more confident and brash. When he had put her under Evangeline's tutelage a few years ago, hoping that Asuna could become like her, the only woman Negi respected, even feared at times, the results had been monumental.

Now Asuna was a girl, no, a young woman, that stood tall no matter where she were. Negi had made sure to keep an eyes on his sister at all times, at school he had paid off a few of the teachers to report to him on how her life at school was, whenever she went out with her friends he put a pair of his best on watching over her, secretly making sure that she didn't get any problems. She was too precious to him to do otherwise.

A moment later, when Asuna had changed into her pajamas and brushed her teeth Negi looked inside her room again. The girl was currently crawling into bed and burying herself under the sheets, Negi smiled as he saw her graceful movements, how the fabric slid across her skin. As she had burrowed herself down he walked up to her and made a fuss with the sheets, covering her up. It was the usual ritual, Negi had never stopped tucking her in despite vehement protests from Asuna.

The girl now was rolling her eyes and when Negi was done she pulled down the blanket to the way she wanted it. Negi only smiled as he sat down by her bedside and ruffled her hair.

"Hey Negi," Asuna suddenly said, the girl looking slightly pensive now. Negi looked at her.

"What?" He asked kindly, idly noticing that she had left the top buttons unfastened as usual, giving a slight view of her cleavage. She really mastered seductiveness... she didn't even do it on purpose.

"How long are you're gonna work like this?" Asuna asked him and Negi snapped back to reality. "You're hardly ever at home these days." Asuna continued, "I feel almost like I'm back when we lived in the slum and you always worked all the evening. I mean, I know you have to work but... isn't there any possibility that you might get home a little more?" Negi blinked at her words but eventually he smiled

"You're right..." he said kindly, "But isn't golden week approaching? What do you say about going to Okinawa then? Just you and me."

"Oh for the love of..." Asuna said, rolling her eyes. "You've waited all your life for a chance to say something like that?" she asked him, acerbically poking at the carefree way he had said something like that. Negi only shrugged now.

"Well okay." he said, "If you don't want to go that's okay, I just thought that it would be something nice to do..." he looked away, waiting for her response which came immediately.

"Good because Okinawa is SO field-trip." Asuna said, changing her voice to sound like a bratty little girl, "I wanna go to Malaysia." Any other teenager would have blustered out that they did want to go to Okinawa but not Asuna, she was WAY too smart for that. Negi only threw up his hands.

"Sold." he said before leaning forwards and planting a kiss on her forehead. That was the best part of his day, as soon as he felt the skin of her forehead against his lips he felt like he was soaring. This part was like a drug to him and made him want more. However he pulled back and gave him a slight smile before standing up and walking through the door.

"Good night hime." he said softly.

"G'night." Asuna said tiredly before turning around and pulling the blanket up over her shoulders. As Negi closed the door and shut his eyes as well, thinking about the young woman inside the room. He loved her, he loved her enough to do anything for her. Yes... anything. He wouldn't trust anyone else with her, she was his to protect, _his! _

Thanks to her he had gotten strength to go through with everything, she was the source of his ambition just as he was the source of her maturity. Their relationship was closer than anyone could understand and it would remain as such forever. Negi had already made his decision about that. Asuna had grown, she was something new to him now, a woman, a beautiful one. He showed his love to the little girl in the way he always had but to the woman she now was he would show it in a different way... any day now.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

* * *

"Asuna!" Negi's voice came from outside the door and Asuna grumbled, "Are you getting out any time this year? Your friends are here." Negi continued and Asuna rolled her eyes.

"I'm done when I'm done baka-Negi!" she yelled before returning to applying her makeup. Geez... why couldn't he ever get that this was a delicate process? If she messed up she'd look like a clown and THAT was out of the question. She DID have an image to uphold.

Outside the door, however, Negi rolled his eyes too. He walked down the stairs and looked out into the hallway where Asuna's friends were waiting. It was the usual three of them. First was the athletic girl who had said his name yesterday, Setsuna. She was graceful girl with a slim body, one that Negi had gotten both one and two thoughts about. Second was the dizty little girl that was Asuna's closest friend, Konoka. This girl was so naïve and innocent that Negi had almost been unable to believe it, she was a girl he'd get twice the usual for. Last was the pale little wallflower Asuna had for some reason befriended and now followed her everywhere like an adoring puppy, Sayo. Negi had idly realized that she reminded him of Ako.

He shrugged when he looked at them, indicating the stairs.

"Her royal highness of the painstakingly annoying appliances of makeup will be along as soon as her exaltedness deems us unworthy mortals worthy of her divine presence." he said with a snooty voice, making an elaborate bow while indicating the stairs. Sayo snorted at this before immediately realized what she was doing and forced herself to be quiet. No doubt she would be the laughing stock of the group for making such a noise in front of him Negi thought as he suddenly heard Asuna in the stairs.

"Miladies!" he continued with that nasal voice, "Rejoice, for her exal-OW!" the last exclamation came from the fact that Asuna had nailed him in the head with a slipper. Stalking past him with a sour glance at him she greeted her friends with a smile and got into her shoes.

"I'm off then." she said and Negi raised his hand.

"Have fun," he said, "I'll be home by two today by the way."

Really?" Asuna asked as she put on her jacket, Negi could see that the news gladdened her.

"Yeah." he continued, "So what do you say we have dinner somewhere?"

"Sorry, we were going to eat out today." Asuna said, indicating her friends. Negi shrugged at this.

"Why not invite me along?" he asked, noticing how the girls around Asuna tensed at this. "It's a win-win," he continued, "You get someone who pays for it all and I get a chance to hit on your friends." This time he dodged just in time to avoid another slipper and retreated into the kitchen. "Spoilsport!" he yelled just before the door opened and, a few seconds later, slammed shut.

When Negi was sure that Asuna had left he grabbed his jacket and walked outside, locking the door as he took out his cellphone. Opening the phone-book as he walked into the kitchen he quickly picked out one of the numbers and called it. At first there was no answer, only a steady rhythm of beeps, then, after a good while, a voice answered.

"Yeah?" the gruff voice asked as Negi got into his car.

"Is everything ready?" he asked as he turned the key and felt the engine start.

"Ready an' able," Kotaro said in the other end, "The guys are all geared up an' we're just waiting t' roll." Negi backed the car out from the driveway and rolled his eyes.

"Stop acting like you're in the army," he said with a serious tone, "I'm not in the mood for stupidity." Kotaro fell quiet at this.

"Okay sure," he said eventually. "Wait a sec..." the other end fell quiet and Negi could hear some quiet sounds to talking in the background. After a while Kotaro returned. "Sorry, Kei wanted me to ask how quiet we must keep this."

"It's the slums moron..." Negi deadpanned as he drove through the streets, "Remember where we grew up, you really think there will be any real investigation?" When he had said this he could almost see Kotaro's grin on the other end of the line.

"Got it boss." Kotaro almost giggled, Negi wondered what the madman was planning now. But who cared? Kotaro was a mad dog, Negi knew that, but as long as the White Dragons died he was satisfied and he could keep the dog leashed after that.

* * *

Soon Negi swung left and drove his car into the alley, cruising up to the large warehouse that was the basis of his empire and parked it next to the entrance. He noticed the large vans that were parked right outside the building, two of his men standing outside one of them smoking. Stepping out of the car he gritted his teeth when he for a second had to put weight on his crippled leg. He still had that limp from the time the junkies had jumped him. It was something he kept as a reminder though, a reminder to never get complacent or drop his guard. As he was walking up towards the vans both the men snapped to attention when they saw him.

"Good morning boss." they both said but Negi just walked past them towards the doors to the club. He didn't bother to even acknowledge the grunts, if they wanted him to see them they would have to prove that they were worth his time. Really, it was the best system, thugs to hold a gun went thirteen on a dozen, by only keeping one eye on them he'd pick out those who were worth anything.

Slamming the doors into the club open he was met with the sight of his men standing in front of a table that stood right below his office. They were currently going over the contents of the table, namely a pile of weapons. Automatic rifles, sub-machine guns, shotguns, it was all there and he could see on the men's faces that they were excited about this. Idiots, for them this was just a spiced up trip to the shooting range. Well as long as they kept shooting...

He then noticed Keitaro, his lieutenant seemed to have recovered from last night. He was currently standing by a large ammo crate and twirled a pair of mini-UZIs around his index fingers, having inserted them in the trigger guards. It was quite fascinating to see how the guy that originally had been a clumsy and jittery idiot now handled the two guns like out of some movie. Whirling them around he eventually came to a stop, the two handles landing in his palms and the fingers clenching around them immediately as he pointed the guns forwards.

"Congratulations," Negi said dryly, "You're in Matrix four, now stop playing around with the guns, you're gonna shoot someone." Keitaro turned to look at him, as did many of the men. However his lieutenant, having reverted to the state that most of the men only knew him in, only held up the guns, showing that both of them had the safeties on. Negi rolled his eyes and wished that his lieutenant wasn't so god damn unflappable when he was like this.

Still: Keitaro really was one of the most interesting men he had met. At the beginning the man who currently was putting bullets inside a clip had been one of the Mahora Guns, a drug-addict and loser who was pathetically easy to bully. But as time had gone on he had shown several qualities that made his stand out, his hard-working attitude amongst other things. If you gave him an order he would complete it somehow, always.

Physically he wasn't anything special at all, he was of average length and in fact thinner than most of the thugs that now surrounded him. Still, his relative geekiness was offset by the white-bleached hair and the eyes, eyes that betrayed the man's mental instability. Owing to a life of having been treated like a scum and his heavy drug-use, the man was borderline insane. Still, the lanky man's madness had actually turned out to produce some pretty useful side-effects.

As Negi analysed that man's quick movements with the gun he was currently loading he remembered how useful the man's meekness and madness had turned out to be. During these last years Negi had discovered how easy it was to mess with people's heads. It was incredible when he had realized how he could meld Keitaro after his wishes, almost addictive. The result had been beautiful, a stone cold psycho of a murderer.

It really was interesting to see how deeply he had fallen. Negi knew much about Keitaro, more than the man perhaps knew about himself and not the least from the stories he had heard yesterday. He knew that the guy had once upon a time been the greatest goody-two-shoes that existed. Poor little submissive Keitaro, a clumsy but well meaning fool that had gotten the short end of the stick. Now Negi had personally seen to his transformation into the man that was even colder then he at times. Especially that one time came to mind.

_Flashback:_

_The man yelled in fear as Keitaro held onto his suit, holding him over the edge of the tall building. Keitaro was watching the man with utter impassiveness in his eyes as the only thing that stopped him from falling off the edge was the grip Keitaro had on his tie._

"_P-please!" the man whined , "I didn't tell anyone, I swear!" Keitaro didn't even react though. Only looked around on the roof, except for them it was empty. _

"_Listen here!" he said after a while, looking straight into the man's eyes. "You are a rat, a traitor and a scum. For that, you will become a dead man.__Your pathetic excuse for an existence is finished and soon my friend," Keitaro stated, looking at the ground where the shadow hid how far the man actually had to fall, increasing the fear factor, "I will let you go and watch you fall about ten stories to the ground where you will become a wet spot on the ground." The man whimpered as this but Keitaro wasn't done, peering into the black alleyway he continued when seeing how deep the drop was, he couldn't even see the street clearly. _

"_But I'm going to give you a chance." he said, reaching into his clothes, "I'll give you one chance to end it all now" With that he took out a gun with his free hand and held it up in front of the man. The matte black gun was like a hole into the abyss for the terrified man. _

"_This is your saviour," Keitaro said, indicating the gun, "If I let you you'll drop for a long time before you die, but if I shoot, It'll be all over at once." he told the man, calmly and clearly. "Start to count down, if you want to die quickly, count down from ten, when you reach zero I'll shoot you and end it all." _

_Now Keitaro suddenly loosened the grip on the man's tie, making him slide a few inches further towards death. The man screamed in fear as Keitaro continued. "Start counting, the drop is much longer than ten seconds!" he demanded. _

"_A, AH!" the man screamed, "T-t-ten! N-nine! Eight! Se...seven!" Keitaro looked impassively at the man as he continued to count. Waving him along with the gun Keitaro listened how the man counted down, driven by his desperate fear of dying. "Si-ix! F-f..." the man trailed off and Keitaro spoke up. _

"_Don't stop counting" he said calmly, jerking the man to continuing. "I won't spend all day standing here and my arms are getting tired." Keitaro now flexed his other arm. "Perhaps I should go to the gym more often?" he mused before stopping with a apologetic look on his face. "Sorry I was interrupting you. Continue."_

_Helping the man along as he counted down towards his death Keitaro counted together with him. "Five... four..." he said impassively, cocking the hammer of the gun back. "Three... two... one..."_

"_Zero!" the man screamed with tears streaming down his face and Keitaro lifted the gun, pointing it at the man before he sighed. _

"_You know there were you stopped in the middle?" He asked, scratching his forehead with the gun. "That's not good, if you're counting down you have to do it in one swoop. And now... since you didn't play along the rules..." he stopped now and shrugged. "It's really your own fault." These were his last words before he let go of the man, watching how he disappeared, screaming, over the edge and fell down towards his death. _

_End flashback: _

With Kotaro being known as the mad dog amongst his second-in-commands Keitaro had soon gotten the nickname Neko, the cat, from how he played with his victims. In some sick way Negi almost felt like a father to the older man, he had personally seen to this transformation after all, created a perfect murderer out of a meek loser, not necessarily skill-wise, but mentality-wise.

Looking away from Keitaro he looked to see if he could find Kotaro somewhere. He got a pleasant surprise when the man was coming his way dressed up, as always, in those expensive suits of his. He was currently holding a large mug of take-away coffee in his hand and was sipping at it.

"Morning Negi." Kotaro said as he approached, "I got everyone together, figure it's just as well to hit with all we've got."

"AK-47s..." Negi said, looking around, "Uzis... MP5s... is that a machine gun?" he noticed that one of the burlier guys in the group was currently holding something that looked way too heavy to be a normal assault-rifle.

"Yep." Kotaro said, "As said, hit with all we've got."

"Good." Negi said before he looked around, "Now where's Saito?" he muttered. He had plans for that little snake. Eventually he noticed the man hiding near the other end of the large table, looking decidedly uncomfortable. Negi smirked to himself as he made a "come-hither" motion with his hand towards Saito. The man flinched at this but nevertheless came over, his face betraying his wariness.

"Good morning Saito." Negi said with a smile, "Bad night?" he continued, "You look kinda down. Give him a sip of your coffee Kotaro." He indicated for his friend to offer Saito some but the blonde man declined.

"I am just fine:" he said with a forced smile "Thank you for asking."

"Good." Negi said, clapping his hands in front him and keeping the pleasant look on his face "Then this won't be a problem." Reaching over the the table Negi grabbed hold of one of the guns and held it up on front of Saito. "Today's your first kill, aren't you excited?" he continued and Saito's eyes went wide. "Take the gun." Negi said when the man didn't move. His voice had dropped into a deep, ice cold one now. It was the voice that demanded obedience and that wouldn't accept a no. Kotaro and Keitaro both reacted when they heard the voice and within a second they both stood beside Negi, glaring at Saito.

Eventually the man took the gun, his hand shivering as he did so. Negi smiled at Saito again when the blonde's hand was fully clasped around the handle. Patting the man on the head he turned to Kotaro.

"Get the guys into the vans, it's time to roll."

* * *

"Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!" Asuna yelled as she darted into the schoolyard, her friends right after her. They had been caught up along the road when Sayo had dropped her bag and the contents had flown all over the street. Setsuna had even been forced to climb into one of the trees to get hold of some of the handouts that had flown up there. Even if the athletic girl had gotten up and down the tree quickly they had still been badly delayed and now they were already five minutes late. Sensei would kill them!

Darting into the building the girls all removed their shoes at the lockers and flew up the stairs. Asuna looked at her watch and swore again, not good! Not wanting to be one second more late than they already were the girls threw themselves at the door handle and tore it open.

"Safe!" Asuna yelled as they all tumbled inside, making a loud racket and calling the attention of the entire class to them. It was first when Asuna had said this that she realized that what she just had done might not have been the best idea. Their teacher was currently glaring at them from behind his desk. All one hundred ninety centimeters of him was seething with irritation and Asuna realized what could come next.

"We'll..." Asuna pointed out into the hallway, "Just go stand out here then..." Without waiting for an answer she shut the door slowly. This happened all the time anyway, Asuna was used to it. Lining up to stand in the hallway Asuna smiled at her friends, "Looks like he was having the red week." she whispered to her friends, referring to the joke they had been making that their teacher got periods. Konoka and Setsuna both snorted while Sayo only blushed.

"I..." Sayo begun after a while, "I'm sorry Asuna-san..." she said quietly, the meek little girl almost whispering. "It's my fault, I should have kept a better grip on the bag." Asuna stopped her by putting her hand over Sayo's mouth however.

Her meek friend always did this, her self-confidence was as low as it could be and she somehow always found a way to blame herself for what happened. Ever since Asuna had met the girl the first time three years ago Sayo had always been too timid to ever speak up. It had been one time during the winter when Asuna, Konoka and Setsuna had been going home from school. They had suddenly come face to face with the scene of two delinquents harassing a girl. They had grabbed hold of her bag and had emptied it on the street, laughing at how the girl tried to pick the things up and kicking away some of the items every now and them.

Asuna had seen red that time and yelled at them to stop. She hated that kind of losers, thugs picking on the weak just for fun, scum! Before the thugs could react she had already shoved one of them, making the delinquent fall down to the street. She followed this up with a trick Negi had learned her and put her shoe to his groin, hovering it a few inches above the package ready to stomp. It was funny to see how meek they became when threatening their balls and the delinquents had pulled back immediately.

When the delinquents were gone Asuna and her friends had helped Sayo to pick her things up. The girl had only mumbled a short thanks before trying to run off again but Asuna had stopped her, noticed that one of her knees had started to bleed from when she had had to crawl on the ground like that. She had half taken, half-dragged the girl home to her house, which was just down the road, and made sure that the wound was taken care of.

It hadn't been to much more after that, Sayo had thanked them and left for home when the wound was fixed up. However one week later Asuna had seen the girl again, this time on the train. She had decided to go up and say hello to the girl but had been taken aback when Sayo had looked positively terrified. After a short talk Asuna had realized what the problem was though. Someone was groping her, and it was the man right next to Asuna!

_"YOU SICK PERVERT!_" had echoed through the train as Asuna had kneed the man in the groin with all she had, making a scream of pain echo through the cart. At the next station Asuna had grabbed hold of Sayo and run off with her. It was first when they had left the station that Sayo had broken down into tears, having been terrified by what had happened.

Asuna had done her best to comfort the girl and after that she had refused to let Sayo out of her sight. Asuna wasn't a girl that would stand for that kind of things to happen and decided that she'd become Sayo's friend that day. The meek girl had become shocked when she said that though and tried to apologize, saying that it wasn't necessary for Asuna to do that, but Asuna had cut her off, telling Sayo she didn't need to apologize for everything that happened.

That was something that had remained a constant fixture thus far, Sayo would always be apologizing for things and Asuna would stop her and say that she didn't need to do that.

"You're just silly now Sayo-chan." She said with a smile, "It''s not like you meant to drop it, right?" She now removed her hand from Sayo's mouth, allowing the girl to talk again.

"But..." Sayo begun and now Asuna glared playfully at her.

"Right?" She asked with a slightly harsher tone and Sayo caved immediately.

"N-no..." the girl said immediately and Asuna smiled.

"Stop blaming yourself for everything between heaven and earth Sayo-chan." she said kindly, "It's not your fault." She had said it a hundred times before, and she'd say it a thousand times again.

"Quiet out there!" Sensei's voice came thundering from within the classroom and Asuna "eep"-ed as she immediately stood straight again and kept quiet. For a while everything was quiet before Asuna begun to make faces at her friends, condemning them to spend the rest of their penal time trying to not laugh.

* * *

The car sped along the street, trailed by several vans and other cars. In the car at the front, a large SUV, Negi sat in the front passenger seat. The driver's seat was occupied by one of his the goons, the man keeping his eyes fixed on the road, knowing that mucking about was a sure ticket to death.

Behind him Saito, Kotaro and Keitaro was sitting, the former was sitting in the middle, doing his best to not shake and to not look at the gun he was currently holding in a feverish grip. The second was sitting to the right and was methodically cleaning his Desert Eagle with an old rag and an industrial solvent, he was almost religiously methodical and careful. The last was sitting to the left and was loading shells into a shotgun, moving his hands in an almost trance-like way. Negi, who had looked back to watch his lieutenants, eventually slapped Kotaro on the leg.

"Call ahead." He said to Kotaro, who glanced at him before taking up his cell-phone. Kotaro had been the one who had dug out the White Dragons' hiding place and he had posted one of his men to keep an eye at the place. The man had hid at one of the nearby crack-houses for a week now and kept a lookout. Kotaro dialled the number with one hand, keeping the other still around his coffee and glancing down at the small screen. Looking up from the screen he raised the phone to his ear

"Yo." Kotaro said when someone answered in the other end. "How's it lookin'?" For a few seconds Kotaro was quiet, listening to the voice in the other end, before his face suddenly split in a grin. "That so?" he asked, his voice suddenly having sunken into the low tone of savage glee Negi knew all too well. Kotaro glanced at him now and winked, his teeth still showing in his large, savage grin. This intrigued Negi, it seemed that the outlook had good news. Keitaro had come back to reality too, the man was now sitting with his cheek resting on the stock of the shotgun and the barrel into the floor, using it as a crutch for his head. "Keep both eyes on it," Kotaro said, "We'll be there in five."

As Kotaro closed the cellphone Negi raised an eyebrow at him.

"Did something nice happen?" Keitaro asked from the other side of the back-seat and Kotaro glanced at him.

"He said some dressed-up guy in a fancy car arrived," the burly man said as he put the cell-phone back in his pocket. "Waltzed right in as if he owned th' place." At this Negi's eyes widened and Keitaro leaned backwards.

"He's their bankroller," The bleach-blonde man said, closing his eyes and smiling softly, "I call dibs."he continued, almost sing-songing.

"'Ey!" Kotaro suddenly said, that man had just taken out his gun and started to look it over again, "You got that rat," he continued, "Stop hogging all th' fun."

"First come first served." Keitaro said monotonously, "And don't break out that solvent to wank off your gun again, it reeks." Kotaro was just about to snap back when Negi interrupted.

"Lay it off!" he snapped and his old friend quickly stopped. "I swear you are like a pair of kindergarteners." he continued as Kotaro leaned back, sulking in the back seat as Keitaro smirked. "Just for that you are sharing him, now shut up." He continued, turning back to look at the street and leaving his two psychos to lieutenants to figure out how they were going to share torturing someone to death. The goon eventually turned to the right and swung off the main road, heading towards the slums.

"Home sweet home." he muttered sarcastically, watching the broken windows, trash covering the streets and tonnes of graffiti that showed where they were. The Tokyo slums, the shit-end of Tokyo, the worst place in Japan. Wryly smiling to himself he realized that he felt something akin to nostalgia as he watched the streets of the hellhole he had lived in for almost ten years.

"This really is a dirty place." Keitaro remarked as he looked outside the windows and saw how they passed by one of the alleys. "I can't tell if that's trash or if it's people."he pointed at something by one of the corners. Kotaro turned to look at it and furrowed his brow.

"Whatever it is it looks like shit," he said with a pondering voice, "An' that's literally."

"Charming," Negi said absently as he looked across the street, trying to see if he could spot anything that might be the White Dragons' base, "You just won the upper class twit of the year competition, have you already forgotten half your life? Fifteen years ago that was you." He looked into the rearview mirror he noticed that the vans suddenly swung left, disappearing behind one of the ramshackle houses. They had to be close if the vans were moving into position.

"Hey I didn't smear myself in shit," Kotaro protested at Negi's comment, "An' take right 'ere." he suddenly said to the goon, who nodded and immediately swung right. They drove into a small alleyway and Kotaro picked up his phone again, waiting for Negi's command.

"Give the call."

The cars suddenly came swerving around the corner and screamed as they ran down the street. Outside the warehouse the three gang members who had been keeping lookout all started. They knew enough to immediately pull out their guns but they were too slow. Only a few seconds later a swarm of bullets mowed down them all as the men in the cars shot their sub-machine guns and assault rifles at full auto against them. The wall behind them was sprayed with blood and bullets and the cars continued down the street just as swiftly.

It was now that a series of small vans came roaring too, these grinding to a halt outside the warehouse and the back-doors of them slammed open as heavily armed gang-members poured out. One of them ran up to the warehouse door and tore it open, firing an entire magazine of bullets inside before he ran inside, followed by the others.

Inside the gang, the White Dragons, had been taken by surprise and most of them didn't even have their guns at the ready. Negi's thugs however were fully armed and the resulting battle was more of a slaughter. The White Dragons did take cover as soon as they could, hiding behind shelves, overturned tables and large crates to desperately shoot back. However Negi's men didn't lack answers. Kotaro and Keitaro were both at the forefront now and as the White Dragons' desperate barrage forced them to take cover behind a crate Kotaro grinned. Keitaro swung back in behind the crate after having managed to take two of the gang-members out and looked at his colleague.

"Time for some gore!" Kotaro roared as he reached into his clothes and took out something, Keitaro didn't flinch at the sight even if most people would have pissed themselves at the sight of the grenade now in Kotaro's hands.

"Overcompensator." Keitaro deadpanned as Kotaro tore the safety pin out with his teeth and threw it towards the large row of crates where a big group of men were hiding. The roar of the battle around him nearly drowned out his voice but Kotaro heard.

"Fuck you an' enjoy the fireworks!" he yelled as he waited for the blast. When the explosion rocked the room Kotaro's smile was almost saintly and he took up his gun. "Killer time!" he whooped as he got up and quickly survived the scene. The grenade had hit dead on and Kotaro could make out the carnage that was currently covering the floor there. He raised his gun and blew the head off a guy that was crawling out from behind the crates, his face already torn apart by the explosion. "Kill 'em all!" Kotaro roared and Negi's men pressed forwards. Kotaro and Keitaro took the lead, gunning down any man unfortunate enough to be seen by the two psychos.

"Drama queen." Keitaro said as he raised one Uzi and peppered the legs of a guy gunning away from him. The young boy, seemingly only 16 years, screamed from the pain before Keitaro hit his head too. Kotaro rolled his eyes.

"Whine whine whine." he said, blasting the arm off a gang-member trying to shoot him. "Can't ya do anythin' other than whinin'? The girls ain't likin' that ya know."

Keitaro suddenly had to step back to avoid a guy leaving out from behind a crate and swinging a knife at him. Kicking the man in the balls Keitaro made him collapse to the ground before he shoved his mini-UZI into the man's mouth and pulled the trigger. "Well the girl last night didn't complain." he shrugged, getting up from the corpse of the man who's head now lacked the back half.

Kotaro stopped to stomp the head of a badly wounded man, his heavy boots crushing the skull at the third stomp and spreading the messy contents across the floor. "So what did ya name th' hooker this night?" He asked, reloading his Desert Eagle and moving on, leaving a gooey red footprint after himself.

"Haruka." Keitaro said, suddenly noticing someone hiding behind the supervisor's office. "...I thought to try something new..." he muttered as he raised his UZI's and unloaded them, quickly inserting two other magazines and firing at the thin walls the man was hiding behind. The armour piercing bullets tore through the thin sheet metal walls and a scream of pain could be heard from behind.

"Is it Christmas?" Keitaro asked to himself as he went to look behind the small office building. When he got there he saw that the man he had hit was a man wearing an expensive designer suit and who was staring at him in blind terror, trying to crawl backwards. "It is!" he said, turning towards Kotaro, "I found him!" he said loudly and Kotaro slapped his hands together at this.

"Jackpot!" he man grinned, "Sit on him or somethin' so he ain't leavin'." he continued as he turned around. "Okay guys!" he roared, "Dig through th' place an' cap any survivors." he gestured towards the further parts of the warehouse. "When the boss gets here I ain't wantin' no gunfire so hop to it!" The men immediately fanned out and started to go through the warehouse, a gunshot being heard every now and then as they killed the surviving White Dragons.

Throughout the hall now bodies lay scattered, some of then Negi's men but most of them the White Dragons. All in all over forty corpses covered the floor, some of them in pieces. Kotaro surveyed the scene for a while with a large smile on his face before he reached for his phone and called Negi.

"You work fast." Negi greeted him when the man answered, "Did you start throwing grenades again?" he continued and Kotaro grinned.

"Hit 'em with all we've got." he said and he could hear Negi sigh on the other end.

"If the merchandise is fucked it's coming out of your hide." he said and Kotaro could hear how the line died as Negi hung up. He quickly looked around and grabbed hold of the nearest gang-member.

"Oy." he said, "what's your name?" The guy was about to answer when Kotaro shook his head, "Doesn't matter, the boss is on the way in, bring him up to speed with all the details, I have some shit to take care of, got it?"

"Uh..." the young man said, taken aback by the sudden events, "Yeah boss." he eventually said and hurried towards the door. Kotaro grinned as he rubbed his hands and walked towards Keitaro, time for some fun...

* * *

Asuna gasped from the exertion as she managed to get out of the frothing sea of students that raged in front of the canteen. She was panting, sweaty and she only hope that her makeup wasn't running. Still, she had gotten hold of the food and could with a tired smile pass it to her friends that were standing by the wall in front of her.

"God, bloody, damn!" Asuna panted as she passed the items out. Sayo thanked her as she gave her the melon bread she wanted, "Tomorrow I'm gonna beat Negi until he makes me a bento or something. This is crazy!"She shook her head.

"Poor Negi." Setsuna deadpanned, "Do you ever get him to do anything without beating him?" Asuna grinned at her athletic friend now.

"Nope," she said, "Because I'm an asshole like that. Come on, let's go to the classroom and eat, I'm hungry." Her friends agreed and they all set course towards the classroom. "Nah but seriously," She said after a while, "He'd do it, I don't think he'd ever say no to me."

"You never feel like you're abusing him?" Konoka asked, "Sometimes it's like you're talking about your house slave. It's just that... well... hasn't he enough to do? You said he was running a night-club, isn't that a lot of work?" Asuna smiled to herself, there it came again. Konoka thought she was so smart and hid it so well but Asuna knew. She knew that her friend had a crush on her big brother the size of a house.

Still, she did have a point. But Asuna wasn't concerned about that. "Hell no," she said, "You can't overwork him, it's impossible. I know, because I've been with him all my life."

"How do you mean?" Konoka asked. Asuna shrugged as she started to ascend the stairs towards their classroom.

"Back when we lived in the slums I hardly even saw him." She looked back at her friends and noticed that they had all snapped to attention. Apparently there was something about the fact that she had spent her first years living in the worst parts of Tokyo that got them to snap to attention whenever she talked about it. She continued her story however.

"He worked at a café at Mahora, that was before everything went to hell there, and back then he worked like fifteen hours a day. It was insane really, from morning to evening six days a week. And when it did go south and the café was firebombed he just ups and gets something done. Managed to get a loan and starts up that nightclub of his. If anything he's cruising easy street now, he decides his own work hours and all. With all that in mind it's only good for him if I make him slave a little." Now Asuna grinned, "That way he won't get lazy."

"Well at least you don't have a big brother complex." Konoka said as they reached the top of the stairs. Asuna rolled her eyes now.

"Oh for the love of..." She begun, "He's my brother, that would be sick!"

"Still." Konoka said silently, "Have you never thought about him in that way?" The girl stopped now, pursing her lips as she thought.

"Well..." she begun, "Don't get me wrong, I know he's hot. If nothing else I can look at you three whenever he's within twenty feet to see that." She said wryly. Sayo blushed at this and Asuna continued as she walked into the classroom and sat down by her bench, "But really, he's my brother and that's like a big fat NO sign hanging off him. I mean, he used to bathe me when I was a kid." Asuna pulled the wrapper off her food and sunk her teeth into it.

"It's..." she said with her mouth full, "He's not even a man to me, he's Negi, he doesn't have a sex. So you don't need to worry Konoka." Now Asuna winked at her friend, "You won't have any competition from me" Konoka blushed brightly now and raised her hands to deny that she meant it like that.

"N-no!" She exclaimed, waving her hands, "I didn't mean it like that."

"Reeeally?" Asuna asked, the grin on her face almost shark-like. "So what about that picture of him that you're keeping under your pillow?" Konoka went beet red at this and Asuna kept going, "How you can't even talk to him without blushing? Or what about..." Asuna made a rectangular motion with her hands, indicating something roughly the size of an envelope, and now Konoka's eyes went wide as saucers

"Um...Um..." Konoka's eyes were like those of a a mouse caught by a very dangerous predator. Her face glowed like a flare in the dark of the ocean floor until her mind gave up and performed a perfect backward drop into the land of unconsciousness.

"Works every time." Asuna said smugly.

* * *

The man gurgled as he tried to spit out the blood and teeth that were swimming around inside his mouth, however all he could do was to feebly eject it from his mouth, causing it to run down his cheek and onto his bloodstained suit.

"Hey." Keitaro said to him now, gently slapping him in the face, "Are you still with me?" the bleach-blonde man gently clapped the man's face as he supported his cheek with the other hand. "Look what you did Kotaro," Keitaro said now, "He's all messed up."

Kotaro, who was sitting on a chair a pit away and working with a large revolver, looked up now and shrugged.

"His own fault, dont'cha think?" the man said as he took out a bullet out of his pocket and put it into the gun. "If he just had played along with us 't wouldn't have happened." pushing the cylinder into the gun Kotaro spun it around, making it spin rapidly before he stopped it. "Wanna go first?" he asked Keitaro, holding out the gun towards him, handle first.

"By all means." Keitaro said, taking the gun with a smile. "So mister, what do you think?" he asked the man who was currently resting against the wall, his face a bloody mess and blood seeping from it. Keitaro held up the man's face now, placing the gun against his forehead. "Six possibilities, one bullet." he said, "What do you say? Shall we spin the cylinder one more time? If the bullet is in the barrel you'll die if I pull the trigger now. You could escape death that way, what do you say?"

A distance away Negi glanced at his two lieutenants' sick games with a sense of exasperation. Neko and Inu, they played well together, Keitaro's mind-games and Kotaro's sheer, animalistic savagery. He'd have to rein them in some time soon. Still, at the moment he was more interested in the drugs that his men was packing into the vans. The White Dragons had been stocking a lot of it indeed and as it was Negi wasn't going to let that be lost.

Looking around himself he thought about what the consequences would be. Word would spread, that was inevitable, but he had kept it confined to the slums and it was enough of a mess left behind that the police wouldn't be able to deal with it. A series of black vans, they could have belonged to anyone. With the corpses cleanly left behind and little collateral it was the easiest thing to do to just clean up and forget about it.

Yeah it would take something like a special task-force out to get him before this would mean anything.

* * *

""There is actually a possibility that he really is an honest man trying to get up in this world."" the grizzled man quoted gruffly, "What a fucking meathead..." they had spent the last hour being berated by the lawyer of the criminal they had been trying to get arrested for years now. They had only recently managed to get him into a hearing but that eel had slipped out of their grasp and had made it all a large PR-gig. Thanks to that the chief was an inch from closing the entire case and it was only just that they had managed to dodge it.

"He's a good lawyer." His partner, the much more level-headed of them, admitted.

"He's an asshole." the first man said as he stopped to get a cup of coffee. "We work our asses off to nail a fucking scum and that cunt sits behind his desk and insinuates that we've made it all up." he took his cup and headed off towards his desk.

"It's not that easy and you know it." his partner continued, "There were holes in the investigation and..."

"That's bullshit!" the man hissed, "Well I'm not going to let this fucker get away..." he said as he sat down, his partner doing the same.

"Neither am I but this time we got to be more careful." the man said, "Let's try to work from the bottom." he pulled out a few noted from the mess on his desk. "Let's see now..." the first man pulled up a chair and they both started to go through the notes, hoping to find something that could aid them. They were interrupted after only a second though, a large mug of coffee landing in front of them. Looking up from their papers the two men came face to face with a tall, dark-haired man wearing sunglasses and an expensive suit.

"Officers Nakajima and Takuma?" the man asked, his words given extra weight by his dark voice and the emphasis he seemed to put on every word.

"Yeah?" the first man said now, looking up at the newcomer with an irritable look.

"Special agent Wakamura of the National Police Agency." the man introduced himself, showing them his badge. "Your case is under our jurisdiction from now on. You're relived of your duties, hand over all documents to me and report to your superiors for re-assignment."


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

AN: Once again, beware disturbing imagery, rape and more or less explicitly stated incestuous intents. This chapter probably is the darkest one this far in some ways. Yes, you read that right.

* * *

"I'm home!" Asuna yelled as she walked in through the door, dropping her schoolbag on the floor with a thud and throwing her shoes off the feet with a flick of the ankles.

"Welcome home." Negi's voice said from the living room and Asuna stretched as she took off her jacket and hung it up. Walking into the living room she saw her brother sit in the armchair with a beer in his hand, watching a quiz show on the TV.

"So what's happening?" Asuna asked now, dropping down in the sofa beside him, looking at the screen.

"Dunno." Negi said, "To be honest I'm just looking at the hostess' cleavage." only a second later a pillow hit his face and Asuna grabbed the remote, changing channel.

"Pervert." she said now, the TV now showing the afternoon news.

"_In other news." _the news reporter said, "_the war between the Yakuza families has taken a turn for the worse as a group of unknown gunmen stormed a downtown warehouse, gunning down an unknown number of suspected rivals. The police remain tight-lipped about the details but it is believed to be connected to the intensifying underworld drug-war that's been..."_

"Oh shut it off." Negi said now, "Can't we NOT be reminded of that stuff all the time?" he said as he straightened himself. Asuna obliged now, pressing the power button and shutting off the TV. "That's why I preferred the cleavage," he continued. Asuna sighed.

"Do you also get the feeling that the world seems to be going to hell in a handbasket?" she asked him now, "I mean seriously, first thing we get on the news is a mass murder."

"I understand how you mean," Negi answered vaguely, thinking about the irony in the situation. "It pisses me off too actually."

"I was actually thinking of Takahata-sensei." Asuna admitted now, making Negi glance at her. She was sitting with her legs against her chest and was looking at the dead screen. "I mean, what did he ever do? Okay for actual gangsters but when a guy like him gets killed..."

"It sucks..." Negi answered morosely, remembering what had happened.

_Flashback: _

"_Negi!" The voice made Negi spin around and come face to face with the speaker. Takamichi had just slammed the door to his office open, standing there with something wild in his gaze. _

"_Hey there Takami..." Negi didn't get any further before the man had gone up to her and socked him in the face, making him stumble backwards and crash into the wall. When he had landed he cried out in shock and looked up at him . "The fuck...?" a white bag now landed in his lap, courtesy of Takamichi. _

"_What..." Takamicihi asked now, "the hell is this!" his face was filled with anger as he pointed at the bag. Negi nearly visibly started but calmed down now, looking at the bag with confusion. _

"_Some kinda... drugs?" he asked with a confused tone, "What the hell?" _

"_It's your drugs!" Takamichi yelled now, slamming both his hands into the desk in front of him. "I got it from one of my students..." he continued now, his voice low and hoarse. "She said that she had gotten it here, at your place!" Negi got could inside now, realizing that this was VERY bad._

"_My...?" he continued now, "Hey wait here Takamichi, are you saying that I'd..." he had to make one last effort to try to salvage this, this was not good at all. However Takamichi interrupted him again. _

"_Suddenly you get much more money, you're assaulted in the middle of the night by junkies. I'm not stupid!" Negi realized that it was useless. Takamichi had figured it all out, what the hell was he going to do now? This time Takamichi surprised him though, the man only shook his head slowly and sat down. Taking off his glasses Takamichi sighed, a long, shivering sigh. _

"_Not you Negi..." he said now, "Not you... Why Negi...? Why?" Negi slowly got up from the floor and looked at Takamichi. He sat down behind his desk now, silently looking at the man. After a while Takamichi looked up at him again, this time his eyes were red and tear-stained._

"_I thought you were better than this Negi." Takamichi said now, his voice hoarse. "I thought you wanted to get up in the world and to get away from all this. What about Asuna? Is this how you want to raise her? Into drugs and death?"_

"_Shut up." Negi said now, gritting his teeth at the tirade he knew would come. "You don't know shit Takamichi, you don't know what I've been through." _

"_I do!" Takamichi yelled, "Do you think you're the only person to have suffered? To have grown up in the slums? I did as well! I was involved in crime when I was ten years old, lived for years in a hell made up by greed. I woke up first after a decade, realizing that I was heading straight towards a pointless death. It took me years to get out of it, I left corpses in my wake! And then I met you, I thought you were everything I hadn't been, someone who was better than me!"_

"_Bla bla bla." Negi said now, "Sorry to have disappointed you Takamichi, I guess the time of heroes are over. Don't shovel your ambitions on me, I have other things to worry about." _

"_Asuna right?" Takamichi said now, "I'm not letting you raise her into this Negi. All you'll end up with is death and she will suffer for it!" Now Negi's eyes narrowed and he looked behind Takamichi, nodding when he saw who was there. A deafening bang echoed through the office and Takamichi yelped in pain as one of his legs were pierced by Kotaro's Desert Eagle. Negi calmly stood up now, taking out his gun from the inside of his coat. _

"_Let me get one thing straight Takamichi." Negi said loudly now, Takamichi staring at his wounded leg. Negi now kicked the wounded man in the face, making him crash backwards into the floor. "Asuna is mine!" Negi snarled now, raising the gun, "Nobody takes her from me, nobody!" With that, Negi squeezed the trigger, sending bullet after bullet into Takamichi's body. The blasts echoed through the room and first after over a dozen explosions it stopped. Negi threw the gun on the table now, looking at Kotaro with an ice-cold gaze. _

"_Get rid of this." he said, leaving the office without a second glance at the corpse of the man who had, for years, done all in his might to aid him. _

_End flashback: _

It had been five years ago now, Takamichi's body had been found in an alley, victim of a supposed mugging that had ended badly. Asuna had been devastated for a while, having cared deeply for the old man, but Negi had not mourned him one bit. Takamichi had only been a liability, a man who knew too much and that had been a threat. Still, he admitted his death was useful. Slowly reaching out now he put a hand on Asuna's shoulder, gently rubbing it to comfort her.

"It's okay hime..." he said gently now, "It's okay." Asuna slowly stared into the ground, eventually sighing and giving him a hug too. Negi held Asuna close to him, feeling her curves through her clothes, and inside him the excitement started waking up. She was so beautiful... his little princess, she was a goddess. She was his...

"Hey take it easy." Asuna said now, starting to untangle herself from him, "You're my brother, not my boyfriend." Negi bit back the irritation he felt inside of him and looked at Asuna with a confused look on his face.

"What?" he asked. Asuna shrugged.

"I mean." she said, "Seriously, don't you think it's a bit creepy in a way?" Asuna got back into her seat now and shrugged. "I mean, we're brother and sister, you're twenty-eight and I'm fifteen, yet you're still tucking me in and kissing me like I was seven. Doesn't that seem creepy to you?"

"I see how you mean." Negi said, picking his words carefully. This was it, one of the key moments. "But to be honest, it's not that easy. Where goes the limit for when you can stop caring for you sister I mean..." Negi smiled to himself now, "I'll sound cheesy here but well... We're bound to each other, I don't really think anyone else can understand how it is to be us."

"How do you mean?" Negi was grateful he'd have had Asuna in the correct environments, she didn't react at this whereas he didn't doubt that many would have had.

"We came from the gutter." Negi said, "We've journeyed from the bottom to pretty high up. Can your friends in school understand how it is to be like that? The smell of the bums' puke, the dead people, all those horrible things." Asuna eventually shook her head and Negi did so too. "They can't. Neither can the people I work with, with the possible exception of Kotaro. We're alone in that way, even if we have fun with people, find friends and all... they can't truly understand what it's like to have been where we've been. You are, without any doubt, the person who is closest to me. You're my sister, as said, and I love you. You've been my strength and my source of determination for ten years now. I have been your support, your caretaker."

"We're united by this bond, we've traveled together this far together and it forges us together. And you're my family, my beloved sister, the girl I love more than any woman I might meet out there. It's that familial love, we are one, forged together and parts of each other. Perhaps someone might think that it's wrong but those people don't understand, they don't know what love really is." Negi slowly sneaked over his hand now and took Asuna's hand, smiling kindly at his sister.

"If we want to show this love to each other, why wouldn't we? It's illusions, the ideas people have about it. There are people so afraid of showing love that they refuse to even hug their children. They fear love, they fear affection, and that will follow them forever. It's like with Takamichi, in the end there's too little love in this world. And where should love not start, if not between family members, the love we're born into and that is the final form of all love?" Negi reached out now and ran one hand along Asuna's hair, stopping for a second to knock at the bell she wore there with his finger. "Do you think I preach?" he asked after a second. Asuna eventually shook her head.

"Not really..." she slowly said before she smiled. "I see how you mean. We're family..."

"...And if family can't be affectionate, who can?" Negi said and Asuna nodded. The atmosphere had become subdued now, even peaceful, as the two siblings looked at each other in a rare moment of what seemed like profound affection and love. Asuna eventually reached in again and gave her brother a tight hug, one Negi reciprocated. When she pulled back this time she reached into give him a kiss on the scar he carried on his cheek. Negi smiled at his sister with a seemingly happy and caring smile, yet below the surface his desires were raging tighter than ever before.

If the cellphone that started to ring now hadn't made it's call nobody could predict what would have happened. Negi gritted his teeth and nearly screamed with frustration but externally he only rolled his eyes and shrugged.

"I hate cellphones." he told Asuna, the girl laughing at her big brother's annoyance. Those three words was a stock phrase for Negi and he got out of his chair and took the cell-phone out of his pocket.

"It's Negi." he answered brusquely. It was a secret number and as he answered he was half a mind to tear whomever was calling a new one.

"It has been a while." a dry voice said in the other end and Negi froze. It was Fate! Negi's heart skipped a beat and he made his way out of the room. Whatever would come now Asuna shouldn't hear it. "So how is the club-business?" Fate asked, his emotionless voice parroting the usual casual talk to an effect that was nearly nightmarish.

"Eh well you know." Negi said, time for the usual talk, "A bit up, a bit down. Overall I'm doing fine though, was thinking of expanding a little."

"Is that so?" Fate asked. "I thought you had filled up Mahora, will you be opening clubs in the sewers?"

"Not really." Negi said. Normally that kind of question would have made him give up a small chuckle at the idea. But with Fate, nope. "There's this DJ group from Korea I've been thinking of offering a pair of gigs, saw that their albums sold well. I'd be the first in Japan to do it and I guess I could spin it into an entire festival."

"A fine idea." Fate said, "And a reason to celebrate too."

"You think?" Negi asked, his heart dropping slightly. That meant a meeting at Al's place. Officially Negi was still unaligned and Fate only met him at safe places. Al's brothel was that kind of place. "Well if you're up for it." Negi continued, "What about a trip downtown and a pair of martinis at the usual place?" Martinis his ass, but it was just as well to get the charade over with.

"Another fine idea." Fate said, actually getting something in his voice that Negi, had he been less terrified of the man and convinced of his utter inhumanity, would have pegged as warmth. "I'll be seeing you in an hour then."

"See ya there." Negi hung up the phone and gritted his teeth. God bloody damn it! He had been that close! Still, happy face, happy face, couldn't act angry around Asuna. He put down the phone in his pocket and turned around to walk back into the living room. However right behind him Asuna was standing, leaning against the wall with a wry look on her face

"No rest and no respite for the busy businessman:" she quipped, "I'll call some friends and we'll watch TV. I know how to order takeout and can lock the door myself. Off you go." She smiled at him and waved her fingers in a farewell gesture. Negi, who had been about to launch into an apology, was stumped and in the end all he did was smile and leaned in to give her a kiss in the cheek.

"I love you." he said with a smile before he walked out into the hallway, putting on his jacket and hunching down to take on his shoes. "I'll be home as soon as I can." he promised Asuna as he looked up from his tying of the second shoe, "I promise". As he got to his feet a pain stabbed through his wounded leg and he flinched slightly. Damn that leg! Asuna saw it too but Negi only shook his head. "It's all right." he assured her. "See you." Asuna smiled at him and nodded as Negi closed the door.

As he got into his car he gripped his teeth though. What the hell did Fate want now? He kept Mahora running, earning missions for the albino every week. He kept it all subdued and didn't' raise any more fuss than necessary. What more did the pale piece of shit want from him!

While he tore through the city streets he realized that he was furious and took a deep breath. No matter what Fate had been up to Negi knew that his boss wouldn't accept being trifled with. After the death of the Yukihiro head Fate had managed to install one of the children of the oyabun as the new leader of the Tokyo yakuza. The albino had moved with enough speed and determination that the situation never had had time to escalated into full warfare and the new chief, a moron no matter how you looked at it, had been blinded by Fate's fake sincerity and devotion enough that he had made Fate his advisor and nowadays Fate was the shadow-king of Tokyo.

Fate ruled Tokyo indirectly, Negi ruled a campus directly. Negi didn't have ay illusions about what took the most skill and knew that Fate was still way out of his league to take on. No matter what he had tried, no matter how indirect, sneaky or clever his subtle stabs at Fate's power-base had been the albino had countered them with a seemingly supernatural skill, it was as if he could read Negi's mind.

Eventually arriving at Al's brothel, Negi got out of the car and handed the keys to the bellhop. He got up the stairs with a slight effort, his leg not being too happy with stairs, and pushed his way inside the large foyer. The place was as gaudy as ever, the same chairs as always stood in one corner but the courtesans entertaining guests were different, as were the guests. Looking around, Negi managed to see one of the persons he'd been expecting would be here. Sitting by the bar with a large bottle of beer in front of him, the self-styled "Blood-king of Tokyo" was sitting, his characteristic mohawk being the sign that Negi recognized him by. Negi looked at his watch, seeing that he was about twenty minutes early, decided to walk up.

"Club soda." Negi said as he sat down next to the man, the bartender immediately noticing and acknowledging his order. The man who had been sitting with his beer only looked to the side however, a dry smile setting over his sharp features.

"So you were summoned too huh?" he said with a voice hoarse from screaming, smoking and drinking. "Makes you wonder what the hell he's up to."

"Good to see you too Tosaka." Negi said as he got his mineral water. Tossing the payment on the counter he took a sip of the carbonated water before he looked at the man. This man was one of the more bearable of Negi's peers in the hierarchy he was occupying despite his business in illegal fighting rings, dogfights and everything that meant bloodshed. Perhaps it was that he had worked his way up through the ranks as well, starting out as a gladiator who had managed to become a champion in the illegal blood-sports.

"So how's Mahora." Tosaka asked. "Kidnapped any more teens?"

"Any more people beaten to death?" Negi countered, making Tosaka chuckle.

"A few." he said, "It's these amateurs who thinks "ooh, bloodsports, wicked" and decides to fight even though they don't know shit about the ring."

"Good riddance I say." Negi took another sip of his water. He couldn't stand the people who went into this world with half-assed attitudes. They deserved everything that came to them.

"Well I'm the one who's being investigated for it." Tosaka said, "And since I can't pull that kind of sappy drama out of my ass that you did I have to pay millions for lawyers to do it instead."

"I suppose that does suck." Negi admitted, "Any ideas on how to counter it?"

"A few." Tosaka said. "Already in the works with it."

"Glad to hear it." Negi said, finishing the small dance of civility that was expected between Fate's lieutenants.

"Heard the latest?" Tosaka asked Negi now, looking at him with a raised eyebrow. "Apparently one of Al's whores ran off the other week. Can't remember the name but it was one of those really run-down, the ones without any use unless you're a total freak about girls."

"No I didn't hear anything about that." Negi said, getting a bit concerned. If that girl had been any of the ones he had sent to Al he'd be in big risk of being exposed. "Did they find her?"

"Yeah they did." Tosaka said, "She tried to hide in the slums, some crack-den there, but they found her yesterday, dragged her out back and shot her."

"Well that's a relief." Negi said, "You sure you didn't catch her name?" Tosaka shrugged.

"Eh, it was A something... Ami... Aki..."

"Ako?" Negi asked, suddenly feeling mirth bubble up inside her. Tosaka snapped his fingers now.

"That's the name!" he said grinning slightly, "She was one of yours?"

"My first." Negi said, chuckling at the whole thing. "What are the odds of that?" Tosaka gave up a quick bark of laughter now. He raised his bottle now.

"To Ako," he said, "May she become cum-dump of the afterlife." Negi laughed as he raised his bottle and toasted Tosaka to that. They both took a deep swig of their respective drinks and when they were done they noticed who had come up to them.

"News spread swiftly, do they not?" Albiero asked with a sultry smile, the man hadn't changed one bit in eight years. "And from your toast I take it you won't attend he funeral?"

"Nah," Negi said, "I don't have time for study-trips to the waste incinerator." Tosaka chuckled at his words and Negi basked in the glory of the situation. Once, such a long time ago, he and Ako had been nearly equals. He had been a slum-kid working at the café and she had been one of its customers. Yet now he was so far above her that her death only merited crude jokes to him. He had taken her money, her ability to function without him, her virginity and in the end, he had even taken her freedom. With her he had built his staircase in order to climb and as he climbed she had fallen. This was how far he had come now, this was his progress, and he loved it.

"Do you have time for a meeting upstairs?" Albiero asked thee two men now and Negi nodded, taking one final sip of his club soda before he left it and headed for the elevator, accompanied by Tosaka and Albiero.

Upstairs the whole circle was gathered. Seated in Albiero's and Evangeline's luxurious couches was a full dozen men, all of them Fate's direct underlings and all of them belonging to the secret shadow-empire Fate had built, the underworld of the underworld. Tosaka and Negi walked inside and casually sat down in some of the free chairs that remained.

The entire gang was here. Embezzlers, extortionists, murderers, thieves, smugglers, drug-runners, traffickers. The entire crime register from A to Z was represented here. Fate had divided Tokyo into fifteen zones and handed control over each of them to one of his personally bred and trained lieutenants. Negi had been awed when he had realized that the things Fate had done with Negi had been things he had done with fifteen men, each of them hand-picked from the most diverse circumstances.

Also, seated in the chair by one of the short ends of the table was Fate himself. The albino looked as unassuming as ever, carrying the same, subdued clothes as usual and having the same, careless look on his face

"Then we can start." Fate said now and in one instant the room fell silent. Negi noticed yet again now masterful the albino was, a whisper could echo as loudly as a scream from this man. "The time has come to make the final move." Fate said now, "You all know that the Yukihiro are weakened and broken. They maintain their facades of civility and control but in truth their empire has crumbled a long time ago. With one final strike it will all be over. I've called you here because of that very reason." Fate leaned forwards now, clasping his hands in front of him.

"One night." he said now, "That's the time in which their empire will truly end. I've tracked them for a full year now and the day after tomorrow they will be spread all over Tokyo for various reasons, that's when we'll strike." Fate's two bodyguards stepped forth now and begun to hand out small envelopes to each of the gathered men. Negi took his envelope with a growing sense of unease. So the day had come at last... He couldn't say he was happy about it, something this big was risky like hell. Still, he knew Fate wouldn't be brash. "Open them." Fate said and the men all opened their envelopes. Negi looked down at his and a sinking sensation suddenly made its way into his guts.

Yukihiro Ayaka. This was not good, NOT good at all. So the brat daughter of the patriarch would be in Mahora in two days' time. And Negi was the one who...

"These are your targets." Fate said, "You will not speak to anyone about this, other than the thug you order to act for your sake. Choose someone you know will be able to do it, but also make sure that, above all else, there's nothing linking it to me. Understood?" A chorus of affirmations came from the gathered criminals and Fate nodded. "Then there is nothing more to say." he told them, leaning back in the armchair. "Go, and see to it that this is done."

The albino didn't need to bid them farewell, every last one of the people present knew that it was over now. In silence the twelve people all left. The gravitas of the man was choking, like an anaconda coiling around you, controlling all you did. They all feared Fate, the opportunistic, greedy and self-serving scum that now left all were terrified of the man, him more than of anything else. And the greater the risks he put them in was, the more they feared him.

As Negi got into the car he felt frustration well up inside him. This wasn't his kind of game... His playing field was Mahora, peddling drugs and helping students "vanish". These kind of games, these kind of power-plays, was above him. Fate had let him swim in his pond but now he called upon him to be a pawn in the game where the underworld of Tokyo was the prize. He gritted his teeth as his car sped across the streets of Tokyo. Even now... even after enough bloody years, after all these corpses, all these depravities, lies, trickery and villany he was still a small-timer, a little frog in a well, and Fate was towering high above him.

Fuck that freak of nature, fuck that pale-faced aberration of a semi-human! He hated Fate, hated him down to the very core of his being. His disgusting paleness, his smug attitude, his everpresent calmness, his seeming carelessness that in truth hid a sickening brilliance. Negi's car started to pick up speed as he travelled along the streets while his fists clenched around the wheel. Somehow... one day, one way or another he'd bring that freak down! He'd play along for now but sooner or later Fate would get careless, they always did, and Negi would be the first in line to carve through the neck keeping that unflappable, mutated face on his shoulders.

When he pulled up the driveway to his house it was dark and the lights from the windows were slicing through the darkness. Negi was still angry and slammed the door of the car shut with a loud slam. Stalking up the path to the house he ran a hand through his hair, the other clenching the note with the name on it. When he opened the door he was almost tackled by Asuna, who was dressed up to go outside.

"What's with the face?" she asked him when he appeared in the doorway. Negi realized that he was looking thunderous and did his best to shrug it off.

"Sometimes I feel like I'm the only person with half a brain in this business." he said, being intentionally vague. "Where are you going?"

"Just down to the store." she said. "We just ran out of potato chips."

"We who?" Negi asked, forcing himself to do small talk as he felt the smell on her breath. Great... Asuna had dug out some of the beer. Still, that was one issue Negi had long since decided to not care about. Asuna could drink if she wanted, she was his princess and he had no issues with her being an adult. She seemed only a little tipsy though, fortunately she had learned to hold her beer. He was more curious about who the others would be.

"Just Konoka." Asuna said as she jumped into her boots. "The others were busy."

"She's not going with you?" Negi asked innocently, recalling that her friend was not a good drinker. In fact her giddiness she naturally possessed usually doubled and her reasoning worsened. Curiously, that fact intrigued him a lot at the moment.

"Nah she's just a bit tired," Asuna said, confirming his assumptions while sighing. She was starting to look a bit worn out too. Maybe he should get her another coupon for a day at the spa to brighten her up. "I said I'd go get the snack and she could rest in the living room."

"You go and I'll watch her with the bucket," Negi joked, eliciting a smile and a giggle from her. It made him grin to joke with her after all that shit downtown.

"I'm trusting you to look after her," she teased, grabbing her purse and walking out.

"Oh believe me I will," Negi joked back, shouting down the hall at her as she vanished out of the door. Turning around, he made his way into the living room where Konoka was sitting in the sofa. The girl was obviously completely wasted, sitting with her head slowly bobbing up and down.. "I will indeed..." Negi smiled to himself, feeling that at last fate showed him some understanding.

"Oh" Konoka said, sounding both startled and disorientated as she saw him. She tried to get up but her arm gave way and she slumped back into the brown leather of the sofa. "Negi-san," she greeted sheepishly, making another valiant effort to get up. She was like a small doe having ended up on a frozen lake, unable to stand up no matter what she tried. She was so fragile... so easy... Negi`s smile grew deeper by the moment and his chuckle came involuntarily.

"How do you feel?" he asked as he walked up at her and sat down beside her, "Head a bit sore?" he cooed, noting well that she seemed to tense when he sat down to her. "Still haven't learned that drinking too much is bad for you?"

"I'm not that bad," Konoka said, blinking as if fighting off sleep. She made a dismissive gesture that was supposed to be to reassure Negi that she was fine but it came out like an uncontrolled flail instead.

"Don't worry Konoka-chan." he told her gently. "I've been there too, a little fun becomes some more and suddenly, whoops, you wake up on the other side of Tokyo in a bicycle stall with no pants and a bear sleeping right next to you." Konoka laughed at his joke, dumbly giggling as she found the joke too funny to stop cracking up at. It took her a few seconds before she could recover and by then Negi had turned so that he was sitting sideways in the sofa, his legs up on the seat as he faced Konoka. "You know something Konoka-chan?" Negi continued now, feeling a thrill inside him as the girl looked straight at him, so vulnerable, so defenseless. "I'm really happy you became Asuna's friend."

"Oh..." Konoka seemed at a loss for words now, blinking as a bright blush spread over her face. "Y-yeah..." she stuttered, seemingly getting a bit scared. The brazen clothes she was wearing, no doubt forced to it by Asuna, contrasted so much with her shy attitude. The short skirt, the tight, almost see-through, blouse and the lace underwear he could sense underneath didn't suit her personality at all. But it worked for him, it worked so well. "Asuna-chan is a really good friend. I'm happy that..." More Konoka didn't manage to say before Negi leaned in and captured her head by wrapping one hand behind it. Gently pushing her head against him, he met her halfway with a deep kiss, interrupting the girl before she could say anything more.

"I don't mean it like that..." Negi said softly, "Konoka-chan, has anyone ever told you how beautiful you are?" Negi raised his other hand to run it along her chin, feeling the smooth skin under his thumb before he planted another soft kiss on her, this time on the cheek. He could hear how Konoka's breath was picking up pace and feel how she started to tremble. Pulling back a bit, he saw how her eyes were those of a girl in shock. Smiling again, he ran one hand through her long hair, gently playing with it.

"I don't understand it..." he whispered, " your hair..." he said as he twirled a lock of her hair around in his hand, "Your mouth..." he placed another kiss on her trembling lips. "Your skin..." he started kissing her face, pulling her closer to him so that she ended up being held against him. "You're like an angel, a beautiful, alluring angel."

"N-Negi-san..." Konoka whispered. Her hands having landed on his shoulders but doing nothing else. Negi interrupted her with another kiss on the mouth.

"Please..." he whispered to her, "Just say Negi... I want you to say my name Konoka... Konoka" he continued now, making sniffs of her hair as he pushed his face against hers so that his mouth was right next to her ear. That way she didn't see his smile when the next words came like soft velvet, wrapping itself around her soul. "I love you Konoka." he continued like that, saying the girl's name over and over again, intermingling them with soft declaration of his love. The girl tensed, being stiff and breathing shallowly as her virgin soul took in the honeyed words, unaware of the poisonous serpent slithering under it, wrapping itself around her heart and baring its venom-dripping fangs.

"B-but...Ne...gi" Konoka protested feebly, her breath shallow and quick as he kissed the nape of her neck. She was looking at him with a fervent, almost feverish gaze, seeming as if she blinked she'd wake up. "W-what abou... A-Asuna?"

"You let me worry about her." Negi said as he pulled back and brushed her hair from her forehead. Leaning his forehead against hers as he looked deep into her eyes, he put a finger on her trembling lips to stop her from saying anything more. He felt the smell of saké on her breath. It was almost overpowering. "She'll understand..." he continued, "I'll make her understand." he whispered, "I love you."

"I love you..." The girl in his arms whispered, melting like butter from the heat of his words. He captured her lips yet again and this time Konoka started to respond. She was clumsy, unskilled and crude, yet her lips tasted victory. She swallowed every last word he whispered to her. Poor stupid little girl... how gullible could one be? Yet... Negi was hungry now, hungry for the control he had over her. He gently pulled back from her clumsy responses and got distance enough that they could see each other clearly.

"Lie down." he said, pulling back so she had room enough to lie down. Konoka looked back at the sofa for a second, getting a confused furrow on her forehead. Negi nodded though, pointing at the sofa. "there." he said and Konoka only hesitated for a second before she lay down. It took the intoxicated girl some time to get into position, she moved slowly and uncertainly, but in the end she was lying down.

Negi savored the sight of her lying down. He could make out her panties now, her small breasts peaked up from her chest only a few inches at most and her head was slightly raised, looking at him. Negi stole a peek at his watch, seeing that there was plenty of time left, the store was half an hour away. Knowing Asuna, it would take perhaps up to an hour and a half, she never rushed things. He smiled again and started crawling along the sofa, taking his time as he slowly approached her, savoring intently the domination he would soon enjoy over her.. Negi came to hover above Konoka, standing on all fours as he leaned down to kiss her. The girl raised her hands to take his face in them but Negi stopped her and gently shook his head. Konoka pulled back immediately and Negi savored the feeling as much as he could.

The drunk girl was like clay in his hands and by god he was going to mold that clay. He reached one arm down to cup it on her sparse bosom, slowly kneading it as he traded kisses with her, invading her mouth with his tongue in an almost straight analogy of what he was doing to her soul as he twisted, coiled around and subdued her tongue.

Konoka was starting to moan, the inexperienced girl being overwhelmed by the sensations Negi put her through. Alternating between circular and vertical motions, his ministrations of her breast and his kisses made the girl's back arch. Negi knew what he did, and he did everything to drive the girl crazy, he could tell that she was starting to lose it. Using his hand like a claw with the fingers digging into the flesh he could tease her nipple with the palm, something that always worked. She was lying still, obediently keeping her arms at her sides even as she had to clench her fists into the sofa to stop herself from reaching up.

Negi smiled at her obedience and nervousness as he moved to unbutton her top. Opening it, he felt a small surge of delight at the sight, damn that looked tasty. Yet, he didn't have all time in the world... Also, Konoka had tasted the honey and loved it, now the next part came. Negi broke off, slowly pulling back as his hand left her breast. Slowly shaking his head, he started to rise up, moving away from her.

"What am I doing?" he asked, faking a tone of uncertainty. Konoka started to push herself up now. "Konoka I..." he looked at her eyes, seeing the confusion and the loss in them.

"Negi what's wrong?" she asked, her voice calling out for him to keep going. Negi didn't however, he instead sat back on the other end of the sofa.

"I'm sorry Konoka." he said, continuing to sound concerned and ashamed. "I shouldn't have done this. I'm an adult, I should know better."

"But I..." Konoka begun, starting to sit up. She didn't understand what he was talking about. What more, the sudden loss of the pleasure he had given her made the girl, whose inhibitions were gone due to the alcohol, desperate to get him back.

"You don't have to say anything Konoka..." Negi said slowly. "I can see it, you don't want this... I'm sorry, I was too quick, wasn't I?"

"No!" The girl beside him exclaimed, shaking her head. "You don't... I want it." she said, forcing herself to say the last words. Not from hesitation, but inexperience Negi was taking his time, being patient even though the frustration still boiled inside him. He had to get this stupid little thing to do as he wanted soon anyhow.

"If you really are..." Negi said slowly now, leaning back. Konoka's eyes were pitiful, even pathetic in their earnest desperation. He pretended to not look at her though and instead saw her reflection in one of the mirrors inside the room. He had to bite down on his lips to stop himself from smirking at her. She was so easy! "Show me." he continued.

"How?" Konoka asked at once, her voice betraying her eagerness to please. Negi raised a hand, making an urging gesture.

"I... what about your clothes?" he said, asking with a careful voice as to not frighten her. "I mean that's how you..." he paused now, not going to use any of the words he normally used about this sort of things. "...do it." he finished after a while. Konoka seemed to hesitate now, recoiling a bit. Of course, she had hardly even kissed boys before. Negi shook his head now, seeing her hesitation.

"I'm sorry, it was a stupid idea..." he said, starting to slowly get up from the couch while thinking to himself "Hook...line..."

"Okay!" Konoka exclaimed when she saw him get up. Negi looked at her now and saw how she already was starting to unbutton her top with trembling hands. "...and sinker..." he thought to himself, having to bite down even harder now to not smirk. The girl shivered now, slowly taking off her top as Negi sat down again, watching. It was going too slowly though and Negi reached out now, his hands touching her clothes as he stopped her when she was working on the last button.

"I'll help you..." he said, smiling kindly at her. The girl seemed frightened again now but she wouldn't back out, not now. Even though she startled at his touch, Negi carefully begun to strip her now. He ran his fingers over her body, keeping his eye contact with her as he ran his hands over her. She shivered when he removed her top, she closed her eyes and and looked away when he removed her bra, when he started to remove her skirt he could feel her flinch again. It was intoxicating, no matter what he thought of sex otherwise this was what he loved the most. She was afraid, yet submissive. Her lithe body trembled at his touch, not from excitement only, but just as much fear.

In the end she was completely naked with the exception of her panties. He wasn't going to rush with that anyhow. Instead he took her arm and led her to straddle him. As she sat on his lap, her crotch against his, he gave her one quick kiss. Just one, to keep her obedient. He smiled as he pulled back from her.

"Your turn..." he whispered as he reached back, waiting her her to move. It was with distinctly more eagerness that Konoka moved now, lured in by this fake show of equality he gave her with this. She took off his t-shirt clumsily, but quickly. When it was off she leaned in again to kiss him. Negi was amused by how she tried to be assertive but instead only came off as awkward and rushed. Stupid... what a stupid little bitch this girl was.

Yet, she could pull off his pants and his socks too without any incidents and now Negi felt how the eagerness started appearing. Finally his little hunt was drawing to its close... now he could start getting what he wanted. Pulling her back into her straddling position as he leaned back against the couch he pulled her close and sunk his tongue into her again, holding her against him as he deep kissed her once more. Negi had decided to get her a bit hot and bothered again before taking the next step, no reason to take any chances.

It worked like a charm, Konoka soon begun to moan into his mouth, panting as she writhed as much as his grip allowed her to. She tried to touch him, running her trembling hands over his face and his body but her inexperience, the sensations that were so new to her prevented her from focusing on the task for any great period of time. Soon he was pulling her strings like a puppet, making her move as he desired with use of her ereogneous zones and her fingers with the occasional flick from his tongue. All Konoka could do was to stimulate him as best as she could, her clumsy movements nevertheless managing to build a fire in him and making him eager to take this another step.

He then stopped. He didn't slowly break off or pull back, he merely stopped. Konoka kept going for a pair of seconds but then stopped as well. Pulling back, the girl looked at her. The alcohol-haze was still here, clouding her mind.

"What is it?" she asked him, finally not looking afraid at the interruption. She had been teased enough that she didn't hesitate any longer. The fire in her beckoned her to keep going. Taking his sweet time, Negi made sure to make his breath a bit forced and look tensed up. He eventually shook his head, giving her a forced smile.

"I'm sorry... I'm a bit wound up." he said, making it sound as though he was trying to not show that he felt bad. This was the delicate part, he had slightly less than an hour to go so he had the time to make her play his script.

"Why?" Konoka asked, slurring a bit before she shook her head. Negi embraced her for a moment now, letting their bodies exchange heat before he leaned back again. He sighed before he spoke up now.

"It's just... well..." he whispered into her ears, making a show of seemingly agitated and uncomfortable. Pulling back, he gave Konoka a wry smile, looking almost defeated.

"D-did I do something wrong?" Konoka asked now, the girl's eyes misting up. By god she was easily manipulated. This wasn't even a challenge.

"It's okay Konoka..." Negi said with a sigh while he still smiled. "It's your first time, right?" he looked at her with a faked look of sincerity and understanding on it. The girl blushed now, drawing an embarrassed breath. "Don't worry," he said to comfort her, "I understand, I'll tell you. In situations like this you're meant to give as well as get."

"What should I do?" Konoka asked now, blinking as she forced back her tears. Her answer was so quick that Negi was taken aback. She really wanted to please him, she was even further gone than he had thought. Negi reached in to kiss her again now and took one of her hands in his. As he begin to explore her mouth again he guided her hand down to his crotch and inside his underwear. She stiffened a bit when she felt his hardness however Negi gently but firmly steered her hand to wrap itself around him.

"Move your hand..." he told her and urged her to move up and down the shaft. Konoka begun to move her hands, holding a cramp-like grip on him but obediently doing as he told her. Negi felt how a small surge went through him now, not merely the stimulation, but the pleasure managing to control her gave. Each pump reminded him she was obeying his whims and desires. Her inexperience spoke volumes as she failed to maintain a rhythm but the control was more than a stable aphrodisiac to counteract his prey's inept skill. Yet he wasn't going to settle here.

"Konoka..." he whispered, making the girl look up at him even as she continued to massage him. "You're really good." he lied, pretending to be a bit awkward. "But..."

"What?" Konoka asked him, doing her best despite her inexperience

"I'm..." Negi pretended to be embarrassed now. "I'm happy that you're doing so good, I love this, but..." he looked away now, trying to seem ashamed. "I prefer it when..."

"When what?" Konoka asked, the stupid little girl so eager to please him.

"When a girl uses her mouth instead of her hand."

"M-mouth?" Konoka asked, seemingly not understanding. Apprehension made a comeback in her eyes and Negi acted on it at once.

"It's just like using your hands." he said smoothly, "believe me. I just like it better when a woman..." he smiled hesitantly towards her now, however internally he smirked as wide as he could when seeing how she responded to being called a woman. "...uses her mouth, is that a bad idea?"

Konoka hurriedly denied that she felt it was that. Her mouth started a rapid fire of denials, to the point that it started to irritate Negi. What she said after that however, made him surprised.

"I understand." she said as she started to get off him."A-Asuna told me something like that a while ago." Negi had to stop himself before he frowned. What the hell was Asuna doing talking about things like that? However outwardly he kept smiling at her.

"Let's get started then." he said as he took hold of her arm. He was somewhat rough as he forced her down on her knees in front of the sofa but Konoka didn't protest. Instead she got up, hesitantly looking at his underwear. "Take them off." Negi told her.

"Should I take mine off too?" Konoka asked and Negi almost laughed out loud. She made it so easy!

"If you want to." He said as he fought to keep his face straight. It wasn't like he was going to fuck her but still, it made up for her flat chest and would help the mood along. "It's up to you, do what you _feel _is right."

Surprise, the little girl swallowed the bait and soon she had gotten out of her panties, standing up only for a short while but still giving him enough time to see the patch of black hair between her legs. She kneeled down again and hesitantly reached for his underwear as well. A nod from Negi gave her courage and she soon had pulled them down.

The girl trembled even more now than she had done at any point up until now as she took him in her shivering hand, her eyes locked on it as she guided it towards her mouth. Swallowing, she slowly opened her mouth and positioned herself over him. Slowly, she begun to lower her mouth unto it, anxiety evident in her. She couldn't see his face so Negi didn't bother to hide his vicious smile now. Time for a bit more fun. Just as she was about to take it into her mouth he thrust upwards and pushed her head down with his hands, pushing his manhood out of her hand and into her mouth, past the lips, teeth and all the way down to the back of the mouth

Choking on it, the girl started to sputter as her muscles clenched in sudden panic. She did bite down on him somewhat but the sight of her doe eyes watering made the pain so worth it. In panic, the girl tried to force her head up again and Negi let go enough that she could only just get him out halfway. Her breathing was harsh, almost despairing, and she shook violently now. She looked up at him to the best of her abilities and Negi quickly smiled kindly at her.

"It's okay." he said kindly, "keep going." he encouraged her. What did she know of these things? Nothing, she was a stupid little virgin. She'd swallow whatever he fed her, literally and figuratively, because as far as she knew this was normal. Still shivering, the girl begun to suck on him now.

"Careful." Negi said, "Mind the teeth..." Konoka stopped now and nodded, making a small sound to show that she heard him. Negi relaxed now, indulging in the feeling of completely controlling her. She couldn't even speak now, being more like an animal he ordered around to obey his every whim. Negi folded his hands behund his head as he pondered this.

He kept instructing the girl, suck, not bite, use the lips, do this, do that. The pathetic, inexperienced girl did all she could to obey him, which wasn't much. He wondered if she had any sense of rhythm as all as she stopped for the umpteenth time. It was honestly getting annoying, not even another virgin would be able to enjoy what the little bitch was doing. Hell, even that mouse Ako had been roughly ten times as good as this.

More and more Negi started to feel like he had made a mistake. As much as this was something you had to practice, Konoka was worthless even for a virgin. He started to wonder if he had made a misjudgment when she was concerned, she seemed born to be useless at this. No wonder Asuna liked having this empty-headed little twerp around, Negi was amazed Konoka didn't use to drool.

Still, as worthless as she was, perhaps she'd make a good minion, or perhaps a trophy wife. She was obedient and had all the stupidity needed to quietly accept being tossed aside whenever her husband inevitably would want to go fuck someone else and not even she would be impossible to teach how to cook and clean.

In the end he got fed up, after over five minutes of careful instruction this stupid little shit still couldn't do anything right. His instructions seemed to go in through one ear and out of the other. Either the alcohol was stewing her brains completely or she was dumber than a fucking amoeba.

"Good work Konoka." he lied now, deciding he had to go to the next step if he wanted to get anywhere. The girl stopped now, letting his saliva-coated member out of her mouth and looked up at him, naked hope in her eyes.

"Was it good?" she asked him hesitantly. Negi wanted to slap her and yell "No you stupid bitch!" but he held his tongue. He had a much better idea for how to punish her. An idea that made him twitch with eagerness.

"Really good." he said as he leaned forwards, embracing her and pulling her up to the sofa again. "I want to do something..." he whispered into her ear now, nuzzling her neck.

"What?" Konoka asked, her voice so sickeningly sweet and tender he almost shivered in disgust.

"I want to love you like lovers do." he whispered. He sounded tender as well but internally he was seething with anger over how worthless Konoka was. Her pathetic display had only served to piss him off even more.

"Do you... mean sex?" Konoka asked. Of course he meant that, what did the stupid flat-chest thing he meant?

"No." he said however. "For people like us, for you and me... it's making love." love, what a dumb word that one. But it worked, this little shit would swallow it like nothing and gladly bend over for him to give her what she deserved for sucking so badly. Konoka's face showed uncertainty still but Negi wasn't in the mood for talking. Instead he forced her to her feet and pushed forwards so she was standing with her hands on the backrest of the sofa.

Stepping in behind her, without any care, gentleness or compassion he roughly shoved himself into her. He was rough enough that Konoka's legs buckled, her knees slamming into the hard edge of the sofa and her head almost slamming into the windowsill. With one, brutal thrust he had sullied her, broken her hymen and sullied her fantasy delusions of love forever.

Negi kept thrusting now, planning to use Konoka for the only thing she seemed good at, a container to come into. He shoved into her with all his strength and brutality, the girl tensing up totally to support herself as much as he could. Yet even though all this she didn't even scream. Negi felt angered by this fact, wondering if she was so stupid she couldn't even scream. Things like these hurt, immensely, why didn't the stupid shit scream?

"Scream damn it!" he was that close to yell it, but he managed to choke it back, transforming it into what sounded like a moan. Yet Konoka didn't even moan, she just stood there silently, letting him continue without doing anything.

In the end however, she worked well enough that Negi could reach the end. Tensing up, he shoved one last time into her as he begun to empty himself into her. Konoka buckled again, ending up with one forearm entirely on the backrest as Negi twitched inside her, pumping into her bleeding insides. He wrapped his arms around her to stop her from trying to thrash and dig himself as deep into her as possible.

When he finally was spent he let go of her, watching as the girl's legs gave way under her and she sunk to the floor, supporting herself as best as she could on the sofa. Negi took a step back and watched as from between her legs, a mixture of white and red was dripping forth, evidence of her violation. He probably shouldn't have come inside her but at the moment he didn't give a shit, the meat had served its purpose.

Idly, he thought about what a pity it was that she couldn't be sent to Albiero's brothel. Virgins hated the doggy-style, being frightened by it as a rule. They lost all control, were powerless, especially if you grabbed their arms. Yet she hadn't complained the least. Oh well, a pity but such was life. As if to punctuate it, Konoka fell to the floor totally, not managing to hold herself up even that much any longer. She hit the floor with a thud, her head lolling to the side. Her eyes were glazed over from the shock and the trauma and Negi found himself chuckling at the sight. He shoved Konoka with his foot to get her off the carpet before she could leave any stains on it and walked to take a shower, he'd deal with her after he had freshened up. Looking at the clock he smiled even more, he had more than enough time.

When Asuna got back from her sojourn to the grocery store she walked into the living room only to see Negi standing on his knees and wiping the floor. Blinking to herself, the girl looked around to see that her friend was nowhere to be found.

"Hey there hime." Negi said, looking up at her with a smile. "Did everything go well." Asuna looked around a bit more, still being severely tipsy.

"Yeah..." the girl said. "Where's Konoka?" she asked. Negi shrugged and indicated the wet section of the floor.

"Your friend had a little accident." he said, shrugging. "I helped her clean up and got her up to the guestroom. Asuna groaned now.

"Aw maan!" she whined. All she got for that was Negi laughing at her.

"Were you thinking of continuing?" her brother asked and Asuna threw herself into the sofa, feeling some kind of smell as she did so. Was that the smell of puke? Oh great...

"Yeah..." she muttered, idly tearing open the bag of chips she had bought. "I just walked around for an hour for no good reason!" she complained. Negi got up on his feet now and lifted the bucket of water he had by his side.

"Hey, hey, it's okay." he told her. "And hey, if you don't mind your stupid old brother he'd gladly keep you company." Asuna looked up at Negi now, suddenly smiling wickedly.

"Sold!" she yelled, sitting up straight. "Go and get some more to drink while I check up on Konoka, you've got one minute!" Negi laughed now as he hurried out into the kitchen and Asuna took a mouthful of potato chips as she thanked god that at least her brother was still up and going. He really was a convenient person to have around, he was cool enough that she didn't have to feel ashamed over him, he looked good that nobody could remark on that, he had an awesome job and also had always let her do pretty much what she wanted.

Getting up, she made her way up the stairs to the guest room and opened the door as carefully as she could in her current intoxicated state. Looking inside, she saw a shape that had to be Konoka lie splayed over the bed with a blanket draped over her. Soft snores could be heard from her and Asuna shrugged. Yep, Konoka was out. Sniffing a bit, Asuna realized that she couldn't feel any smell from her and wondered if Negi had let her shower or something.

Either way, Konoka was in a good place and she could go back to having fun. Closing the door, she got down the stairs again and got out into the living room just in time to see Negi putting several bottles down on the table. Her brother sat down and Asuna jumped him now, ending up straddling him and hugging him.

"You're the best!" she squealed, feeling an almost childish joy that the evening wasn't over already. Negi returned the hug and Asuna got off him, sitting down next to him. Opening two of the bottles, he handed her one and raised his bottle.

"To me then." he grinned and they toasted. Asuna raised the bottle to her lips and begun to chug down the beer. She initially had hated the taste but after four years it had become an acquired taste. Now she loved it and she emptied half the bottle on the first swig. Putting it down, she leaned back and smiled. Sometimes life was good...

Then a loud bam could be heard from the door. Negi and Asuna both startled and Negi was up in one instant. His eyes were wide and he rushed over to the door to see what was happening. Yet, he had hardly reached the door before armed figures came rushing at him, all of them clothed in black and with balaclavas covering their faces. Negi was kicked back into the room and landed roughly on the floor, several sub-machine guns being pointed at him.

"SAT!" A hoarse voice roared, "Don't move, put your hands above your heads, do it now!" the commands came rapidly and heavily. Asuna screamed behind him as another armed figure restrained her, pushing her down on the floor and handcuffing her. Negi saw red, turning around to try to reach her but only got a boot to his back for the trouble. Four men restrained him as a fifth handcuffed him and pulled a black bag over his head.

In ten seconds the assault was finished, out on the lawn a black-suited man looked dispassionately on the house as the armed policemen of Japan's Special Assault Teams dragged the subject away from the house. The captain came up to him and saluted.

"Mission complete sir." he said. "The subject was unarmed and caught by surprise. My men are searching through the house as we speak."

"Report any findings to me." the man said. "We've already got them all but it never hurts to add some finishing touches to it."

"Yes sir!" the officer replied with a sharp salute and within a minute the findings just kept coming, the most dramatic one being the unconscious girl on the upper floor which, despite the obvious cleaning she had been subjected through, still carried evidence of rape on her body.

* * *

Far away, in a run-down apartment in the poorer parts of Tokyo, Kotaro sank down to his knees. His now emptied gun fell limply from his hands as he stumbled, feeling so strange. He felt numb, not at all like he had expected it to feel... in the end he stumbled forwards even more, ending up on all four before one hand reached up to feel his chest. Why couldn't he breathe? Feeling something wet, he pulled away to see blood, blood that had started to froth. Through the haze that started to form he idly remembered that if you saw these bubbles it meant the lung was hit.

Strange... he hadn't even felt it. Looking up, he took in the worn white wallpapers now filled with bullet holes, the dirt-brown floor now stained with blood and with two of the cops that had tried to arrest him already lying dead on it. They had been hit in the face both of them, large parts of their heads missing. They sure hadn't felt it, they hadn't had time.. but he... his lungs.. why didn't he feel it?

Why?

He didn't find the answer, it refused to come to him. Yet other thoughts came unbidden. A surge of memories flashed past him, one after one. The dirty, poor orphanage where he had grown up after the mother he didn't remember died from a crack overdose. A memory of the first person he had beaten up flashed by, a small, scrawny kid who had tried to steal a magazine he was looking at. Kotaro had been thrown out of the orphanage, only 7 years old, after he beat the child's face bloody.

The years he had spent scavenging from thrash cans and running errands for small time crooks flashed by in a painful blur. He had been less than dirt, a thing to be used in whatever way the thugs and crooks he got pittances from saw fit. Often he had merely been used and cheated, sometimes abused and worse.

Slowly, however, he had grown into his right, hadn't he? He had become older and stronger, soon bossing the other street urchins around and beating them up whenever they got uppity. It was also then that he discovered knives, discovered how much more satisfying it was to carve through someone than merely beat them. He hadn't become one of those who needed to carve things up just for the rush, not quite, but the enjoyment was there, was genuine.

Negi... he had found him again when he was sixteen and one of the more infamous thugs on the block. He remembered how his old friend had managed to stay so pure, so uncorrupted; he even took care of a little kid on his own. It had angered to see Negi like that, the moral high ground his friend took had hurt his eyes, especially when he saw how the guy got his dignity shat upon by everyone around him. When his friend finally snapped it had been the happiest day of Kotaro's life.

And that Negi could have gone so far... he never would have thought it. Kotaro had only had to show him some of the ropes and then all of a sudden his friend was shooting upwards, learning the trade as fast as could be. In the end, he had become the boss.

It had all gone so well, they had become kings, ruling over Mahora. Kotaro had had it all, money, women, drugs, violence. Why was he now here, bleeding on the floor? Why? Kotaro soon fell down to the floor completely, dying as soon as he hit it from the gunshot wounds. The three remaining police officers advanced slowly on him, calling for an ambulance even though it was already too late for him. He came from the gutter and in the end he died there, unable to leave it behind.

* * *

Keitaro snarled, an inhuman snarl filled with rage as he threw himself upon the police officer right in front of him. His sudden action meant the man fired his gun one instant too late and Keitaro got out of the way. That little worm! As Keitaro tore at the man's face with his fingers, managing to get his ring finger into the man's eyes, all he could feel was contempt. Contempt for the weakling in front of him. For the first time he actually looked down on one of these people and he couldn't help but love it.

Pushing as hard as he could, he squeezed the man's eye as far back into the skull as possible and then even deeper. The sickening sound and feel only made him grin and the scream of pain only further aggravated the pleasure. Even as one of the policeman's colleagues grabbed him and forced him to the ground he couldn't help but grin.

Weird, he got attacked by cops while walking through a back-alley and was now pushed against the dirty ground. Yet all he could feel was happiness, happiness over that one eye.

* * *

All across Tokyo the police struck, everything from local patrolmen to SAT-units bursting into everything from small apartments in dinghy tenements to luxurious skyscrapers. The raid was the largest one in the history of Japan, carried out with precision, speed and ruthlessness. Years of careful planning came to a head on this autumn day, moles, wiretapping and every last trick in the books of surveillance and espionage having been used as the government of Japan cracked down with all their might upon the underworld of Tokyo, Kyoto and a full dozen other cities.

Analysts would later remark dryly that the only kinds of crime syndicates that had been targeted were the "foreign-way" syndicates, those not like the traditional Yakuza families. From small immigrant groups selling drugs to large syndicates involved in everything from drugs to trafficking, all of them were violent, ruthless and, above all other things, foreign in either nature, personnel or attitudes. Many raised the question if this was primarily a display of justice or nationalism, was the main purpose law and order or to remove those crime syndicates who did not obey the unwritten laws of the Japanese crime-world?

For hundreds of people this was a moot question however as they were hauled away by the police from their homes, from their workplaces, from everywhere, to an uncertain future at the hands of a judiciary system eager to make examples.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

* * *

Negi gritted his teeth, sitting silently in the chair as the suited-up policeman sat down in front of him, inclining his head as he looked at him. Negi however did not move, only sat silently. The man now opposite him had combed-back hair, sharp features and eyes that pierced into you. It was easy to see he was of another cut than the Mahora police.

"I must applaud you thus far." the man said, his voice being like a drum, every syllable being accentuated in a way that gave him a heavy presence. "You've led the Mahora police department on quite a chase, embarrassing them soundly."

"Wow, a cop is congratulating me, pigs fly." Negi said with a sneer. Things were looking dark as hell but he would be damned if he let this man intimidate him.

"Surely a hunter can appreciate the strength of the animal he hunts." the man responded with a smile. "You and me are both the kind of people who enjoy challenges. Do you not feel that bringing down the White Dragons, a hurricane of steel and blood only being won by the certainty and speed with which you moved, was more pleasurable than cowing the Mahora Guns, a bunch of low lives without spines?"

"I don't make up bullshit accusations about you am I?" Negi asked, raising an eyebrow. "What fucking White Dragons?" The man only shook his head now however.

"The drug-runner gang you wiped out in thirty-seven of the most intense minutes of gang warfare Tokyo has seen." the man said. "The bloodbath was amazing, I've only seen that kind of "purity" in a bloodbath twice before, both being during my years in the US."

"What the fuck are you babbling about?" Negi asked, looking at the man with a look of confusion and irritation on his face.

"I was a foreign trainee working in the US Drug Enforcement Agency," the man said genially, "I spent years cutting my teeth against Colombian and Mexican cartels. You'd fit right in there. A cartel like for example Los Zetas operates much like you, only with even higher levels of equipment and training."

* * *

"For your own sake, at least give me your name" the police officer said as he looked at the blonde, pierced crook with an exasperated look on his face.

"Your mom said something similar last night." Keitaro retorted unemotionally staring into the table. After three hours inside the cold, sterile interrogation room they hadn't gotten anywhere. The officer sighed and leaned back, shutting off the recorder for the twelfth time now. Gaining tapes filled with this man's insults wasn't why they kept it.

"You're already screwed you know." he said as he folded his arms. "Who do you expect to come running to your aid?"

"The guys you hire to pound your ass every night." was Keitaro's response. The police rolled his eyes at this.

"Cute." he said. "Look Neko, it's never too late to strike a deal." he added after a second, "Your lawyer is soon here. I'll give you some time with her, then maybe you will reconsider if letting this boss of yours drag you into hell is that smart."

"Great, you got any rubbers?" Keitaro asked now, "I kinda left mine at home."

"Very droll mister." a deep, female voice said dryly behind him. Keitaro rolled his head.

"Both's pleasure, both's responsibility." he quoted one of of the social services' campaign mottos. "And kick out officer cockmongler will you, I don't do exhibitionism."

"I'll leave him in your hands." the officer said as he got up. "He's restrained and we've got video feed. Don't worry."

"I think I can handle myself." the woman said dryly. "Please, leave us."

"Yeah, yeah." the policeman said as he left the room. Keitaro kept staring at the wall, not deigning his lawyer with a look before the woman came and sat down in front of him. She was tall, with long black hair, had an athletic build and sat up straight. She positively radiated genuine confidence and and power. In other words, the precise kind of person he'd love to break, bit by bit rip away her strength until she was a sobbing, shivering wreck. The more they struggled the more fun it was, this woman seemed like she'd last months. Yet... there was something to her. Those eyes, that long black hair... why did he feel like she was familiar?

"So what should I call you?" she asked, looking at him with an expectant look on her face. "Just Neko or do you prefer any other name?"

"Neko will do..." Keitaro said absentmindedly, trying to remember if he knew her from somewhere. "You?" he asked after a while. What came next did not only baffle him, it utterly and completely dumb-struck him, robbed him of his ability to speak.

"Aoyama Motoko." the woman said, Keitaro's mind clicking in an instant even as she said the first syllable.

* * *

"This the one?" one of the morticians, a fat, short guy with round glasses, asked his friend as he looked down on the open body-bag. Kotaro's pale, lifeless face peeked out of it, some trick of light or rigor mortis making it seem as if the corpse was in pain. The other man, a taller, scrawnier one with smaller glasses, leaned over the bag to take a look.

"Yep, that's him." he said after a couple of seconds. "I'd recognize that face anywhere."

"What was his body count count up in now again?"the first guy asked as he zipped up the body-bag.

"Thirty-two." his friend answered as they both pushed the body into the freezer. "Eight of them fun ones."

"Yeah, Inu sure lined them up." the first mortician pulled off his gloves now. "Doubt we'll have someone like that in a long time now."

"Good riddance I say." the second snorted as he tossed his gloves into a bin. "Seriously, I had to dig out his footprints out of the remains of a crushed skull once. If you can come up with any job more tedious than that I'll foot the bill for lunch."

"No bet." his friend said. "Still, it's better than the usual crap, I like challenges."

"Then why do you always run off whenever I try to hook us up with some chicks?"

"I said challenges, not insanity." The two kept chatting as they left the cooling room, having delivered another corpse and now going off to get some food. Behind they left Kotaro's corpse, the man that once had created fear in large parts of the Tokyo underworld only managing to spawn a fleeting memory of hard work in two people of no particular significance. If immortality is to be remembered then Kotaro had truly died now, none cried for him, none would even think of him within a few years. He died as he lived, unloved and unmourned, a violent thug who believed that the emptiness inside could be filled by blood and death yet who only reaped nothingness from it, making the world around him only too happy to forget about him.

* * *

"Uh, thank you I think?" Negi kept playing confused. "You kinda missed the part where I wasn't a psycho though."

"Executing the one man who showed you kindness and tried to help you to a decent life." the man said, "Systematically supplying underage girls to brothels, ordering hits on whoever rats on, threatens or even annoys you, last one is the firebombing of your café by the way." the officer listed it all. "There's really a lot of the Los Zetas over it. You make me feel nostalgi..."

"For fuck's sake!" Negi yelled now, "Why the fuck do you keep dragging every god damn crime that even might have happened in Mahora and nailing me to it? I didn't order that hit, I nearly died! Trafficking, you think I'd traffick girls the same age as my sister! And what? You even accuse me of killing Takamichi now? For fuck's sake, now it's proved, you really want me as a scapegoat!"

"The difference is that I have evidence." the agent shook his head. "You think your organization is waterproof, that through fear and violence everyone can be scared to silence. That's a good method, the Coloumbian cartels all use that, ultraviolence against all people around the rat works well for them. Yet it has it's flaws." The man's smile became somewhat vicious now. "The cartels has learned that in the most painful way possible recently. A coward is a coward in both directions, you failed to account for that. What more, this is still Japan and the level of violence you used hurts the eyes of the old syndicates. To add to it, next time you rape someone you should be more thorough cleaning her. "

"Uh, what?" Negi stopped now, slowly shaking his head. "Okay, rape now? Now you're just making shit up." he kept himself cool but he was more and more beginning to feel really anxious. This was bad, very bad. Who the heck was this guy?

* * *

Albiero smiled at his interrogator, leaning forwards as he raised one eyebrow. The man was slowly approaching a nervous breakdown, Al having gently caressed his leg with one foot for the better part of half an hour now.

"Were you, at any point, involved in human trafficking?" the officer, a proper young man seemingly only months out of police academy push forth with a strained expression. How he loved that the boy seemed to really need to do this properly. Was he a career hound perhaps? Either way this would be fun

"For you, I'd love to be." he purred, watching how the boy only became paler and paler. "Honestly, where do I find boys like you? You are just my type."

"Stop it." the young man said now, showing at last some signs of how uncomfortable he was. Albiero wasn't done however, he only leaned back, showing off the deep cleavage of the shirt he was wearing.

"Perhaps you need to find some way to occupy me." he whispered, "Those hands of yours could do so much to me."

"Sexual harassment is not helping you!" the boy hissed, his hands trembling.

"You seem shy..." Al asked now, getting a pondering look on your face. "What a shame... but don't worry, being a virgin isn't anything disgraceful, I'll take care of you."

That was it, the policeman rose from his seat, his face beet red, and left the room quickly. He slammed the door shut loudly and Albiero was left alone. His sultry manners ran off him quickly now and he sat up straight. Reaching into his clothes, he fished out a small emergency stash he had hidden there. One cigarette and a small match, one of the old ones that could be lit against anything. Using it to light the cigarette he took a deep puff of the lone luxury he had managed to keep, he exhaled the smoke with a deep sigh.

Looking up at the camera, he waved slightly at whoever was watching. It had been a good twenty years, he didn't regret anything. But now it was over... Al had been in this game long enough to see the signs. They were doomed, all of them. The apocalypse had come for them, all they knew would be wiped away and they were powerless to stop it. He idly wondered what his dear wife would do now. He had no doubts of her wits and her skill but he still wanted to be with her now. She was all he had, would he even see her again?

At least it had been fun.

* * *

Asuna walked back and forth inside the room, angry and afraid. The room she was in did seem like a nice place, good looking paintings on the wall, comfortable sofas and a lot of plants, but at the moment she just wanted to hit someone. This wasn't fair! Why wouldn't they give Negi a break! Asuna had already come to hate the police after the Mahora police department had constantly harassed her brother and now, with their god damn home being raided by anti-terrorist forces she was convinced that someone wanted to frame him. Those bastards!

The door opened to the room she was in now and Asuna spun around, half ready to attack whomever came in through the door. It wasn't a police officer that appeared in the doorway however, it was an old woman with her hair in a bun and a long dress. The woman came into the room and closed the door with an apologetic look on her face.

"I'm terribly sorry for being late." she said with a voice that normally would have been a calming one to Asuna but now only was aggravating. "You were Asuna, right?" she continued.

"Yeah." Asuna said, not quite ready to explode yet but it was close. The woman smiled at her and motioned for her to sit down.

"I am Minamoto Shizuna." the woman said. "I'm here to answer any questions you have about what's happened here." she sat down. "It must be very stressful for you, but I swear that I shall tell you everything I know."

Asuna sat down reluctantly. She didn't trust the woman either but she had said answers. Asuna wanted those now, badly.

* * *

Keitaro howled with laughter, nearly falling off the chair. Clutching the steel edge, he found himself almost choking as the laughter ripped through him. Wave after wave hit him, kept him out of action completely and left his lawyer staring at him in confusion. It had taken him several seconds to get out of the shock but when he had he hadn't been able to speak either. Instead he had burst out laughing like a maniac, the gravity of the situation only making the psychopath even more amused.

It took minutes for him to recover, time and time again he was hit by another barrage of laughing and rendered unable to speak or even move for yet another period of time. Coming to his senses in the end, after god knows how much laughing, he looked up at his lawyer to see that she had turned to look at her paper's, going through a document now and seemingly patiently waiting for him to stop. When she heard that the laughter seemed to have abated for good she looked at him, eyes cold as a glacier.

"Was there anything amusing about my name?" she asked, Keitaro only grinning at her. Another form of amusement had bubbled up inside him now. It was really she wasn't it? It was really one of those girls from that place... this would be so fun, this would be so god damn fun!

"Yes, actually there is." he purred, leaning backwards with a wide grin on his face. "Aoyama Motoko.. I remember that name actually, heard it before." He could see a stab of something in Motoko's eyes. Fear? Worry? Anxiety? Either way it was delicious to see it. To see fear in the eyes of that indomitable warrior, he loved it! "Motoko-chan I think it was..." he continued, seeing how the feelings only intensified in her eyes. Yep, she remembered. That was one of the things back then, he had always called her Motoko-chan, something he doubted many had done. What was she thinking of him he wondered. Was he just a maggot from the past? Was he more perhaps? He doubted it really but it would be fun to dig in it a little.

"Anyhow." Motoko said tersely, gathering her papers. "Let's get on with this, shall we?" She did a good job hiding how shocked she was, he gave her that. Still, under that stoic facade he could sense it. Fear... she was afraid. Keitaro felt the scent, like a predator his instincts kicked in and he closed in.

"Who do you think "Motoko-chan" referred to?" he asked "That pathetic little geek, wretched and dismal. Just wanted to die really. Yeah, sure is hard to fall that far, what do you think made him that broken?" It was bit of a long shot, this one. Knowing how much she had despised him, would this even work? Still, worth a shot.

A trembling appeared in Motoko now, her hands flinching a bit. Keitaro got only more and more excited now, not believing that he had gotten not only this chance but such an amazing response as well.

"Motoko-chan?" he asked now, adding some of his old mannerisms into the voice but nevertheless keeping it to a jeer. The result was instant and way beyond what he had expected. In one moment the girl had stood up and grabbed him by his clothes. Tearing him across the table with a a strength he really hadn't expected she now held him only inches from his face. He could see only wrath in them, wrath and force, eyes that once upon a time terrified him.

"Where did you hear that name?" Motoko snarled in anger, Keitaro feeling a surge of delight at her reaction. This was awesome! Motoko was furious, her gaze one of someone ready to kill! That he could have provoked a reaction this powerful, he was awed. Yet, the best was to come. Keitaro had noticed she had a pair of reading glasses lying on the table and while he still was held in her iron grip he reached down and snatched the glasses off the table. He donned them and grinned widely at her in that inane way he had used to once.

"Hey Motoko-chan!" he said, forcing his voice back to the way it had been back then. "Long time no see."

The reaction took a short while but when it came it was exquisite, like fine whiskey. The first phase was shock, shock and confusion in a perfect mixture .then the horror came to fill Motoko's face, starting in the eyes and spreading outwards, horror with undertones of disbelief. She let go of him, backpedaling away from him and hitting the wall. Her eyes were wide, her mouth open, her eyelids rapidly moving and her entire body trembling. Fear, shock, horror. He had seen nothing quite like it before. It was as strong, as paralyzing, as many of those he had offed but here it had something else, more like a mother's or family member's fear and despair at seeing their family killed. He knew one thing however, he loved the sight, loved it so much .

"No..." Motoko said, her voice shivered, was quiet and hesitant, as if she didn't trust it "No... no, no, nonono..." the intensity of her voice only increased, Keitaro could tell that she was about to cry. He couldn't stop smiling now, pleasure filling him. "Urashima... why? Why are you here?" she shook her head slowly, Keitaro seeing how horrified she was so well. It overwhelmed her, robbed this ice queen and warrior goddess of her ability to even speak coherently.

"'Cause I'm Neko." he said, leaning backwards as he tilted his chair and crossed his legs on the table. "Heard of me?" he continued, smiling toothily at Motoko, who just kept staring.

"So all these..." Motoko stared at him, then to the papers on her desk. Keitaro realized that she thought of all the charges pressed against him. Good god she had to be confused right now. "Urashima..." she begun now, "please tell me you haven't done what they accuse you of." Keitaro raised his eyebrows and feigned a look of innocence.

"Of course I haven't." he said "it's me Motoko-chan, how could I ever do such horrible things as these." he gave her his best puppy eyes, eyes that probably were a bit rusty after having been a psychopath's for years. Motoko's eyes showed relief for half a second but then she realized how sarcastic he was. Of course he wouldn't tell her neither this nor that, they were still in a police station. Motoko now surprised him, she looked towards the security camera before she walked up to it and unplugged it. Turning back to him, she came up to the table and looked at him through eyes that were starting to mist up.

"Urashima..." she begun again and she leaned over the table, supporting herself with her hands on it. "Please, I beg you, tell me, did you do all this?" her voice was shivering, horror having turned to grief as she indicated his file. Keitaro only kept prolonging it though.

"But Motoko-chan." he said with faux-kindness, "It's me, of course I couldn't have. Why such a thing is outright impossible." He could see how his ridicule hurt her. He took all her hopes and ground them into her face, yet they were still intact, they would be as long as he didn't say "no". With a little luck he could stretch this out for a long time. Motoko looked at him with a pained look on her face as she sat down, what she said next however made him lose some his good mood.

"We looked for you." she said, "We looked all over Japan to try to find you. But is this where were you all this time?"

"Oh yeah." Keitaro said now, thinking of the inn. "How's Hina these days? She still kicking around the world?"

"She's dead!" Motoko exclaimed through teary eyes. "She died five years ago, clutching a picture of you and asking time and time again where her grandson was!" Keitaro startled a bit at this. Lingering affection for her grandmother still had a place in him and he felt the shock keenly.

"Oh..." he said, taking his feet down from the table and getting a sudden look of pensiveness on his face. After a few seconds he realized that he didn't really care though. When the shock had passed there was nothing left there, leaving him to shrug at Motoko. "Oh well, she was old after all."

"Is... is that all you have to say?" Motoko asked incredulously, Keitaro nodding. Motoko looked at him now, her eyes starting to grow red now. Looking down into her papers, he saw her clench her fist. She didn't know where to turn, everything was confusing to her, confusing and painful. Motoko gripped her pen, seemingly holding onto it for support.

"So how's the inn these days?" Keitaro asked, leaning backwards somewhat again. He'd keep rubbing this in, it wasn't over yet. She hadn't started to actually cry yet, she hadn't even sobbed! "Kitsune still an alcoholic? Does Naru still walk around looking like the geek from hell whenever she leaves the house? How 'bout Shinobu, she still a total doormat?"

"Mitsune-san left the inn not long after you vanished..." Motoko said. "She lives in Hokkaido as an author. Naru-senpai works as a middle school teacher, Shinobu-san still lives at the inn, she's become the unofficial manager there."

"D'aaaaw..." Keitaro said, "How cute." Motoko didn't answer, instead she merely bit down on her lips, collecting her papers as she didn't even look at him.

"How do you want to present your defence?" she asked quietly, clenching the pen in her hand. Keitaro raised his eyebrows, how professional. "In the situation you are in... there isn't a lot of hope for you." Motoko continued, "If you'd consider it however, you could lighten your punishment by making a deal with the prosecution." Keitaro went cold inside when realizing what she meant. She meant that he should save his skin by ratting out his boss to the courts. The very thought sickened him down to the core and he spat at this, the spitwad falling the floor next to him. .

"Never." he said with a vehement voice."Fuck you bitch, I'm not a rat!" Motoko looked at him now. She had regained her composure seemingly totally. When had she gained this kind of iron composure? She was seemingly calm.

"Look at yourself Keitaro-san." She said, using his first name in the first time since... ever. "Don't you realize where you are? You have only one thing to look forwards to down this path! Have you really given up all your hopes and dreams?"

"The hopes and dreams that shat all over me and made me the bitch of the world?" Keitaro asked. Rage was building in him. He suddenly felt it, he wanted to kill, wanted to hurt. But he was restrained, handcuffs holding his hands firmly, and Motoko was still Motoko. He'd tear this back from her however, he could still hurt her. "The hopes and dreams that YOU whores spat on me for?" he continued, "The ones for which I ended up slaving for you, being hunted, beaten, abused, terrorized, a plaything for you! You miss me don't you? You miss having a toy to play with, when I wasn't there you didn't have me to abuse, to torment and to play with." he went all out, planning to grind her holier than thou attitude into the dust.

"Yes." Motoko said softly. "We missed you. We missed your diligence, your care and your devotion. Hinata Inn seemed to become so empty after you vanished. We didn't even understand why you had left, everything had gone so well for you and we were certain you both had passed. We were preparing a celebration for you both back at the Inn."

"Oh I'm SO sorry for messing your party up." Keitaro said with a sad expression on his face. "Didn't it get fun without your punching bag around?"

"We didn't hold it." Motoko told him. "When you never showed up we went out to look for you. Naru-senpai didn't come home for months and in the end Grandmother Hina canceled her vacation, even Haruka-san called in contacts from all over Japan!"

"Wow, you really wanted to drag me back there, didn't you?" Keitaro asked. "Well nyah nyah" he extended his tongue at her with a grin.

"Considering where you ended up, are you really in a position to laugh?" Motoko asked, looking him into the eyes. "You will be hanged as it is. Hanged! They will take you to the gallows, put the noose around your neck and then you'll drop, if you're unlucky you'll end up dangling there and slowly choke to death! Do you really want that!"

Keitaro sat silent now, Motoko's words hitting him. She was right... he was "Neko", one of the most infamous murderers in the Tokyo underworld. If he wasn't hanged nobody would be. Hanged... dead. He didn't want to die did he? No... he didn't want to die, he hadn't wanted to die back during the attack of the world tree cafe and didn't want to die now. Sudden fear settled in him, the animal fear anyone, no matter who, felt when realizing that death was coming for them. He sat silent for a pair of seconds, slowly thinking about it.

"Please, Keitaro-san." Motoko continued, "Despite all our disagreements back then, let us help you. Please. You did so much for us, let me repay that, let me help you save your life." Keitaro then spat Motoko in the face. The girl didn't manage to react before he hit her right in the face, right above the left eye.

"Fuck you bitch!" he screamed, getting to his feet despite the restraints. In a surge of adrenaline he managed to push the heavy table over with his feet and kick her in the stomach,. Motoko's eyes bulged and she fell backwards off the chair, clutching her stomach as the door was torn open and two policemen came into the room. Keitaro couldn't help but grin now as well, as the policemen both threw themselves at him and beat him to the ground with their batons he kept grinning.

"Stop!" Motoko yelled, making the policemen both stop their brutal beating of him. Keitaro had been wrestled to the ground, the chair lying over him now. Looking at Motoko had gotten to her feet and was clutching her stomach now, looking down on him with wide, tear-filled eyes. The spit-wad was wiped away .

"Urashima..." she said now, on the verge of crying. "Please..."

"No.." Keitaro grinned insanely. "Fuck you, fuck you so badly, fuck you all so badly. I'm not a traitor and never was."

"Is he really worth that!" Motoko asked, Keitaro laughing hoarsely.

"He's the only one worth it!" he snarled after a second. Another spitwad flew at Motoko but missed, the two policemen dragging him to his feet, releasing him and proceeding to drag him out of the room. A third officer came up to Motoko, trying to offer her help or something, but Keitaro didn't see anything, instead being dragged off by the two officers back to his cell. He probably wouldn't get any more lawyers. The thought made him giggle.

"Wait!" Motoko's voice yelled from behind them. The two officers stopped up and Keitaro looked back, seeing Motoko stand in the hallway looking after him. "Urashima... we found your promised girl..." she told him, "She's at Todai right now, still waiting for you." Keitaro only looked at her, blinked twice and then shrugged.

"Tell her she's a stupid cunt who needs to get raped." he said before turning away from her. "Well then officers cockmongler and buttmunch, shall we?" he said and nodded forwards. The policemen resumed dragging him away and Keitaro slowly bobbed his head as he enjoyed the tour. He hadn't accomplished anything in life perhaps, but he had this chance to die for his boss, the only chance to matter, to have accomplish something. And for him? For the guy who had given him all he had had only days ago? Totally worth it.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

* * *

Negi slammed his fist into the wall in anger and frustration. What the hell was this! He found that he was trembling. After about one hour more of that cop amiably chatting with him, rubbing Negi's capture into his face and telling him bits and pieces of his background, Negi realized that he was so fucked. The guy somehow knew everything, every last thing, and he had evidence of some sort too! Otherwise he wouldn't be that smug!

Putting both hands against the wall, Negi leaned against it and looked down at the floor. His mind furiously worked, tried to find some way to get out of this. This was not good. This was so not good! But how could he have figured it all out? Where had his empire first begun to crumble? Who was the rat? Marching back and forth, Negi felt his he trembled with fear. He was all of a sudden so deep in shit that he couldn't see any way out.

He had to calm down, running a hand through his hair, he sat down and started to think it through. Kotaro would never rat on him, neither would Keitaro. Both of them were psychopaths bought with the currency of promises of power, he had them in his hands. That left... Negi gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, realizing that it had to be the last man of his inner circle; Serizawa had sold them out.

A coward remains a coward. That agent bastard had found out about Serizawa and applied pressure to him. Fuck... fuck! He had dangled it in front of his face! Negi understood that now, he had practically thrown it out there, telling Negi how they had brought him down. But that couldn't be everything could it? If that was the case he'd weaken his case against Negi, he had to have more things. That guy was too good to make a mistake like that.

He was too good, too skilled. He was a god damn superman of this stuff, Negi realizing he was powerless against this bastard. That guy hadn't even taken him seriously! He played around with him, congratulating him on his small-time achievements and showing an utter contempt for him.

He was dead, it was over, he was totally fucked. He'd end up in jail for the rest of his life and Asuna would be taken from him. It burned in him at that, the realization that he'd lose Asuna. More than anything else he refused that. She was his! He had kept her alive, brought her up to all she was! She was his by fucking right! Nobody could take her from him!

Looking up at the small, barred window, he saw the cloudy sky outside. No... he couldn't let her go, not her, not that. She was something he had managed to do, managed to raise up, even as a slum rat. Everything else he had been handed by Fate but not she, she was the ultimate show of his ability, his fundamental pride and reason why he was where he were. If he lost her he lost everything.

He couldn't let that happen. Not Asuna, not she. He'd keep her, one way or another, even if he had to sell Fate out. Yeah... fuck Fate, that semi-human freak could go to hell, he didn't mean shit to Negi either how. He could even spin some story about how Fate had intimidated him via Asuna. In court at least it would sound good, the agent bastard wouldn't buy it but the court? Well it was worth the try, Asuna was worth the try. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath before he walked up to the door of his cell and started to pound it. That agent would love this wouldn't he? Fuck that, fuck him and fuck Fate, Asuna – his Asuna – was what mattered now.

* * *

Outside the supreme court a veritable army of journalists had gathered, eager for a glimpse of one of the infamous lieutenants of what the newspapers were calling "the single most evil crime syndicate in Japan", the mood was frantic, almost desperate. No names had been published and even the most driven journalist had only managed to dig up a series of possible names. Nevertheless, today he'd be dragged up to court and hopefully they could glimpse him.

This man, who's list of charges included everything from trafficking to drug-trading and even outright mass attacks on enemies, the list made him seem like a psychopath, was top talk of media. According to the rumors one of the top candidates was none other than the golden boy of Mahora, the famous slum-borne young man who had risen to control the night-life of the once illustrious university. If that was true then it would be a scoop unlike anything else, therefore people were delighted as they saw the police cars transporting the man roll up to the stairs. Burly policemen stepped out to cover the doors as soon as it came up, shielding the man from the photographers and cameramen who swamped the car instantly, their cameras flashing rapidly.

The door opened and the man stepped out, a jacket draped over his head to shield his identity as he was dragged up the stairs. Some of the more zealous journalists threw themselves towards the barrier of policemen, holding out microphones to people left and right, trying to get any sort of comments, any comments, from anyone. Like vultures they circled the group as the man was escorted up the stairs to the courtroom. Rarely did these things produce anything special however this time the journalists and cameramen all got front row to something unbelievable.

Suddenly, without warning, the suspect's head exploded. In a gory shower it was burst open, the contents flying straightly forwards and smearing themselves over the stairs. It took them a second to realize what had happened and when they did the suspect had already fallen to the floor, his head gone. Panic came now, people falling down, backing off in fear, even starting to run away. The policemen all had sunken down, some of them pulling out weapons, some of them instinctively covering the suspect. Yet it was all too late. Before anyone had understood what had happened the prime suspect and witness both was as dead as could be.

Far away from the supreme court, nearly a kilometre away, a tall, dark-skinned woman with cold eyes quickly pulled back her sniper rifle and put it down on the ground. With practices ease she picked it apart into several smaller pieces, putting them into a padded briefcase and snapping it shut. She was on her way off the roof in less than a minute, heading to the staircase and down it. She moved quickly yet silently, her steps carrying her down the flights of stairs and to the elevator which she quickly jumped into and pressed one of the buttons. The elevator quickly started to move, heading down into the garage at the bottom of the tall building. She headed over to one of the cars there, throwing the briefcase into the trunk and getting into the driver's seat. With practiced ease she started the engine and swerved out of her parking spot before pushing the gas and heading out of the subterranean garage. When getting out of the garage she took out a cell phone and pushed the fast-dial button. Putting the cell phone against her ear, she heard the signals go out twice before someone answered.

"Yes?" the voice, calm and collected, said.

"I have gotten hold of a cream cheese bagel for you sir." the woman said with a husky voice. "I hope that will suffice."

"That is perfectly sufficient Tatsumiya-san." her boss answered, a slight tone of delight in his voice. "Remind me to work out a bonus for you for that trip to South America you were talking about."

"Thank you Fate-sama." Tatsumiya said respectfully before hanging up.

What she didn't notice, however, was that in one building overlooking the street she currently drove along a high technology device was tracking her movement, picking up even the words she spoke .A computer screen, monitored by a young man with a pale face, was watched by Special Agent Wakamura who stood behind the pale young man, calmly sipping on a cup of tea.

"Clever bastard." Wakamura muttered. He was impressed, he had estimated that Negi had been the one most likely to spill it and Fate had shut him up, publicly as well.

"What happens now sir?" the pale young man asked and Wakamura smiled grimly to himself.

"Now the real battle starts." he said, "the Averruncus family aren't going down this easily. This was just the prelude," he said, patting the computer expert on the shoulder, "the overture won't come for a a long time yet. Tell the others to drop everything and be prepared to move." he reached into his suit and took out the Special Police Agency badge there. "Give this back to the minister of Justice, I no longer need it."

"Will do sir." the guy said, " you know I still don't get why being Interpol wasn't enough for your country."

"We pride ourselves on being "proper", even in the face of things like this." Wakamura said dryly, "Believe you me, there's a reason I left in the first place. Either way, get to it, when Fate reaches South America I want to be ready for him."

"Yes sir!" the young man said and Wakamura left the room, smirking to himself in delight. All this had to him been but one single blow in one of the greatest battles fought against the underworld. Countless more battles were to come and countless more lives would be ruined as he and his colleagues chased the Averruncus family, the shadow lords of global crime, across the world.

Did he care that he left hundreds of ruined lives in his wake? No, not one iota. The ends justified the means, if the Averruncus were ground into the dust he'd gladly let thousands die, that was this psychopathic family's body-count in a year anyway. High morals was the reason these fiends had gotten this far to begin with and he'd play their game against them, undoing them with their own means and the full force of the world's gathered law enforcement agencies. His cause was their undoing, theirs was power and money, that was the fundamental difference that redeemed him fully. Whistling a jaunty tune, Wakamura made his way to the stairs to get moving. The man who had been assassinated only a few minutes ago was already far from his mind, a piece on the board played, captured and discarded.

* * *

Jaunty tunes wasn't what was on the lips of the girl currently standing in the main room of the police station's "visiting room". It was nothing. She just stood there, staring at the TV-screen where a shaken newscaster was currently shuffling with his papers, trying to move on after the event that just had happened. A live feed from the start of the many high profile trials that were going to happen had taken a turn for the horrifying as the suspect had been shot dead by an assassin.

Asuna's mind had ground to a complete halt and she could not believe her eyes. She merely stared at the screen, trying to understand what had happened. What had happened? What was that thing? Something had happened to her brother, his head... it had... but that was impossible. That couldn't have happened. If it had... that would mean that... he was dead? Her brother couldn't be dead. But his head had... it had exploded... so he... but he couldn't...

Asuna suddenly screamed, the moment when it all clicked practically undid her. It was as if something shattered, like her very soul broke into a billion pieces which tore their way out of her skin, ripping through her, slicing her apart. She screamed, somehow trying to undo it, screaming in desperation as she refused to accept it. Asuna screamed, the wild panic in her hoping that if she did it Negi would come and comfort her, that it was all a bad dream.

In her screaming, she felt how two large arms wrapped themselves around her, trying to restrain her. She panicked ever worse at their rough touch and tried to tear herself out of it, wrestling in panic, she ended up being pressed against the wall but headbutting backwards, she managed to hit something and the person holding her lost some of his grip for a moment. Asuna now lifted her legs and pushed against the wall, sending both she and her captor to the floor.

Tearing herself off the floor, Asuna ran. She ran in wild panic, only trying to escape. She narrowly got past a policeman by the doorway and got out into the main offices of the police station. Confused and shocked policemen and civilians both looked up at her but Asuna kept running, leaping over a desk and barely avoiding being caught by yet another policeman. By the door out of the station she was stopped, another policeman with a coffee cup in his hand managing to grab onto her. Asuna lashed out, managing to kick the coffee cup in the man's hand right into his face. With a scream he let go and Asuna crashed through the doors of the station. Adrenaline pounded in her, a primal flight-reflex having started. She had to get away! Away!

She vaguely felt as if someone chased her but she didn't look back, she just ran, ran and ran deeper and deeper into Tokyo as she sought to get away, be it from Negi's death, her jailors or whatever it was. She had to flee!

* * *

Keitaro was being escorted by two burly policemen when he got the news. One of the guards told him it as they were walking through the hallways towards the garage for transfer to some other cell in some other police station or prison or whatever.

"Your boss already got nailed by an assassin. Feel like you should have accepted the deal yet?" he said. It was a taunt, nothing more, something he usually would have shrugged off like nothing. But when he heard those words he froze, stopping in place His mind, just like Asuna's, ground to a halt. The policemen kept going for a pair of additional steps but stopped soon as well, looking back at him. Keitaro remained standing there, perfectly still, as the policemen came up to him, his eyes glazed over.

"Get moving you..." one of the policemen begun now, grabbing Keitaro's arm before he suddenly had an elbow planted in his face. The man stumbled backwards, nose crushed and bleeding, as Keitaro pounced the other man with a snarl, managing to get his arms around the man's neck and break it with one, loud snap. With his eyes now blazing, Keitaro went for the first man who currently lay on the ground, moaning in pain. Getting his arms over the man's head, this including the handcuffs, he twisted around and got into a position where the chain was right over the man's throat and his knee against the man's head. Keitaro pushed with all he had, the man flailing impotently as he was garotted to death.

Alarms begun to blare throughout the facility now, the surveillance cameras having noticed him. Already three policemen came running down the hallway from the left, brandishing telescope batons. As red lights and loudspeakers blared out a cacophony of light and sound and the policemen rapidly closed in Keitaro calmly dug through the keys, looking for the one he remembered from when they had taken these things off him last time. In the end he found them, unlocking the cuffs only a pair of seconds before the first policeman attacked him. He wasn't going to let that happen though.

With a flick of his wrist, he sent one of the batons flying with a spin through the air. They hit the policeman's legs and tangled themselves there, meaning that the man stumbled and hit the floor face first. Keitaro grinned as he disarmed the man and with a snakelike movement smashed the second policeman's temple to pieces. With a body slam, he sent the man falling backwards, into the third, who ended up on the floor as Keitaro's baton dove straight at his Adam's apple.

A minute later the policemen by the entrance was staring at the hallway, seeing to their horror how Keitaro rounded a corner at full sprint. One of them yelled at his colleague to shut the door, Keitaro hearing it and reaching back for the tonfa-like baton he carried in the back of his uniform, having ripped a hole for it there. Sending it skidding along the floor, he managed to get it to the door just as the man pushed the button and the iron gate slammed shut. As it was, it didn't close fully, being held back from closing fully the last few centimetres. Swearing, the policeman pushed the door open somewhat to retrieve it, he didn't have time to do so however before Keitaro kicked him in the face and sent him rolling backwards. The other two reached for their guns as Keitaro came out of the door, grinning manically at them. He was too fast, too high on adrenaline, for either of them to get their guns out in time before they had been killed both just like their downed colleague was a second later, the first victim of what was now Keitaro's guns.

Keitaro continued moving, now with two fully loaded guns. He burst out into the main room of the police office, firing in all directions. Yet it wasn't blind, not by a long shot. He fired with deadly accuracy, each of his shots impacting, wounding or even killing, even as he kept moving. Only a few seconds later he was at the frond door, bursting out of it and firing a pair of shots for good measure back into the station before he turned around and kept running.

A few minutes later, far away from the station, a man came out of a public toilet only to come face to face with a blonde, orange clothed person who came straight at him. He didn't have time to react before Keitaro had punched him in the jugular, smashing it and making him fall backwards into the toilet he just had left. Keitaro followed him into it, coming out a pair of minutes later in the man's clothes. People still looked at him however so he broke into a sprint again. He had to keep moving, keep moving where they couldn't follow him.

* * *

A long time later, days, Asuna found herself sitting on a park bench in the outskirts of Tokyo as the night slowly fell. She was dirty, unwashed, and hadn't eaten for two days. She sat and stared into the ground, not knowing what to do. The scene played over and over in her head, Negi's head being torn apart and scattered over the stairs.

She couldn't believe it, just could not believe how her brother could have died that way. She had for days thought about it, trying to understand but failing completely. The girl found herself utterly and completely lost. As it was, she probably had nowhere else to go either. She had no money, was hungry and lost. The police would take her from her home, if they hadn't closed it down already, and put her with some foster family, if even that.

Everything was lost for her, only days before everything had been great, now it was all gone. Could she even trust her friends? Knowing what her brother was accused of, would their parents let her stay with them or would they call the police to take her away as the sister of a criminal vermin she was to them. No, she couldn't trust them, not the least when thinking about what the police had said, that they had found Konoka raped. Asuna knew that was a lie, but would they believe her?

What was she going to do now? She found herself empty, bereft to the level that she didn't even cry. She had no tears left to cry.

"Hey there little girl." a voice said next to her, Asuna looking up to see a swaying man in a cheap suit. He stank of alcohol and looked at her with a dumb grin. "You look kinda lonely sitting here all on your own." the man continued, leering at her. "would you mind some company?"

"Go away..." Asuna turned away, just wanting him to get lost. She was so unable to deal with freaks like him right now that it wasn't even funny.

"H.. hey don't be like that." the man said, clumsily taking out his wallet and taking out some bills from it. "Let's go have fun instead." he said, Asuna not being able to help the sudden growl she felt in her stomach at that. She looked up at the man now, seeing the scenario play out in front of her. He'd sit there, suggest they'd take a few drinks, perhaps he'd slip something into her drink even. However it was they'd end up on some dinghy love hotel, he'd push himself into her, sweating and oinking he'd blow his load in her, toss a couple of bills at her and leave. She was aware enough of things in life to know what this would lead to.

A cold wind blew past her and she shivered. That made her make the call. Screw it... it'd be money, some way to get food. What else did she have? Nothing, she had nothing at all, this old freak was all she'd have now. Inching to the side, she cleared up some space for him. The man grinned and sat down. He put him arm around her shoulders just as another figure appeared.

This man looked way different. He had bleached hair, a maniacal, staring gaze and wore clothes that fit poorly to say the least. He looked down on the man with a gaze that seemed like it could cut through steel.

"Get lost, fatass." the man said, his voice was soft but nevertheless, somehow, it made Asuna flinch. The drunken man looked up at Keitaro with narrowed eyes. He obviously didn't appreciate being interfered with right now.

"H-hey, who do you think you are!" he said, standing up and ending up towering above the second man. It looked like it was going to become a scuffle but it became so much more when the second man reached into his clothes and took out a gun, an actual pistol, which he pointed at the man's face

"I'm the man who will kill you unless you disappear within five seconds." he said, adding no extra threats of insults. He said it as calmly as if he was talking about the weather. The drunkard paled however, stumbling back and ending up tripping as he hit the corner of the bench. Falling to the carpet, he gave up a grunt of pain, the second man taking one step forwards and cocking the gun. "Three seconds." he said, the drunkard quickly getting to his feet and starting to run.

Asuna stared at the second man, shocked by this turn of events. The blonde put away the gun inside his jacket and sat down on the other end of the bench. Fear crept into the girl, should she run? Who was this guy, some Yakuza? The man calmly took a deep breath before looking at Asuna. A smile that didn't make him any less threatening came over his face, yet the words he spoke made Asuna freeze.

"Hi Asuna, I was a friend of your big brother, Negi." Asuna couldn't move when he had said that. She could hardly even breathe. The man nodded at her, giving her time to recover.

"You... you knew niisan?" Asuna asked after a while, breathlessly, as she felt her stomach churn. From having been emotionally dead, she now was blazing with a mixture of different emotions. The man nodded.

"I was one of his employees at Mahora." he said. "Your brother saved me from a life as a total loser and nobody." The man leaned forwards now, clasping his hands as he looked towards the horizon where the sun was setting, already having disappeared behind the buildings far away. "But they took him, they killed him." he continued, Asuna feeling his words like a punch in the gut.

"Wh... why?" she asked, feeling how she almost wanted to vomit. The words came out of her now, quickly, desperately. "Why did they do this? What did niisan ever do to anyone? What did all this happen!"

"Do you really care about that?" the man asked, looking at her and Asuna almost felt as if she wanted to flinch as his eyes landed on her. "They killed him, took him from us both, and your first question is why? What, do you think there might be some justification for it, is your love for him limited to things like that?"

"N-no!" Asuna said, tears welling up in her eyes and guilt inside her heart. The man's reproach cut her like a knife. In confusion, she shook her head, almost desperately. "No, I didn't mean it like that!" the man looked at her with cold eyes.

"Well I'll tell you anyhow." he said, "He was convenient. An up and coming slum kid that could be sacrificed. The cops, the underworld, they were both using him. They pinned the blame for their own dirty deeds on him and killed him before he could disprove them. He was set up, Fate helped him start his clubs on Mahora only to have him as a sacrificial lamb when the cops came after him."

"Fate?" Asuna asked, slowly shaking her head. She remembered the albino, having seen him at several times. Negi had said that the man was his boss. But had all that been a game by the man? Asuna felt how everything unraveled for her. Bits and pieces fell into place and the image it painted wasn't pretty. She started to feel more than confusion, shame and grief, she started to feel anger. "No..."

"Yes." the man said. "Fate's left the country, the police going after him. Negi's just a corpse in the rearview mirror for them. He was used, betrayed and murdered. But I'm going after them Asuna, I'm going to find them, every last one of those shits who had a part in this. And I'm going to make them suffer for what they did. If you cared about Negi enough that you want vengeance for what they did to him, come with me and I promise you they'll all pay, in blood. Will you come with me?" his voice was slow, steady, almost chanting. Asuna, who felt the anger build in her, more and more, found the words to be like honey, eagerly swallowing them. The entire situation whipped her emotions high and in the end, somewhere deep in her eyes, she found the tears she thought she had run out of. They started to drip down her face, one after one, as she begun to sob. Digging her fingers into her jeans, she begun to nod, she nodded almost furiously.

"Then stop crying." the man said. "If you gotta feel then hate. Grief is useless, hate isn't. Use it..." he said, Asuna stopping to sob. She forced herself to stop even as the tears ran down her face. The occasional hiccup still came through, the man beside her speaking again. "Use it..." he said again, urging her. Asuna nodded again, this time forcing the tears to stop and wiping them away with her sleeve as she gritted her teeth. Inside her the cold, dark sea of grief slowly was burned away. White hot flames of anger, rage, stirred inside her soul. "Use it!" the man said for the third time, Asuna now having her teeth gritted, her body tense and her breath ragged, looked up at him. She met his eyes unflinching, hissing as she breathed, her eyes blood-shot but steady. The man slowly nodded, a sick smile crawling over it.

"That's the spirit." he said, getting up. "Let's go, we've got a lot to do." Asuna got up from the bench as well.

"What's your name?" she asked the man, who looked at her with a wry smile.

"You can call me Neko." he said.

* * *

_Years later_

In a giant western-style mansion outside of Tokyo, in a room on the top floor with polished floor, giant windows with scarlet curtains, antique furniture worth a fortune and countless other displays of wealth and westernization both, the silence was choking. The room was filled, several dozen people having gathered there, and their eyes were all fixed upon one man.

Serizawa Saitou bowed deeply in front of his father, feeling the eyes of the family upon him. They were watching him, judging him. Of course they would, no matter what he did otherwise his name was still tainted. His association with crime – however forced into it he had – meant he still was the black sheep of his family. Yet today, at the great family gathering at the grand mansion of the Serizawa family, he stood here.

"Father." he said respectfully, feeling the patriarch's eyes upon him more heavily than anyone else. For the first time in several years the patriarch had even acknowledged his existence. As the first born son of the patriarch he had been the one slated for inheriting the family wealth, his banishment after his involvement in the world of crime came to light having made his younger brothers overjoyed.

Yet now he was here again, reclaiming the seat that by right was his. His father looked straight at him, the mustachioed man's eyes contemplative. Was it a good move to acknowledge his firstborn son as that? Would the shame of his criminal past outweigh the honor he today brought the family? With the second son being an useless playboy and the third a mediocre nobody the family needed a strong inheritor of the patriarch's seat. He was perfect for the role and as the patriarch spoke Saitou already knew what he'd say.

"My son." he said, sealing the deal. With those two words, he took Serizawa Saitou back into the family. He bowed again, showing grace in his moment of victory. He could, however, hear a pair of gasps from around the room. It was perfect, they hadn't expected this. His useless younger brother looked like he was near exploding and Saitou was delighted by the sight.

The family meeting was now starting in earnest, now the mingling and the power brokering would come. Turning towards his family with a polite and calm expression, he nevertheless reveled in their expressions. For once, he'd decide to enjoy this meeting by simply not giving a rat's ass about talking to anyone. If someone wanted him something they'd come to him now. He was, after all, the next patriarch, if the people who had spit on him didn't show him some quite thorough submissiveness now there'd be hell to pay in a few years. Seating himself in a large, opulent sofa, he readied himself for his family's grovelling with a sinister smile on his face. The things he could extort from them...

A sudden ring from his telephone made him start however. The emergency signal started playing, the one where he had to answer right away. He had only given three people that number and they didn't call it needlessly. One of his cousins had just come up to him to suck up but Saitou stopped her with a smile and a wave of his now ringing phone. Leaving the room despite the disapproving gazes he got from many of the family members, Saitou flipped the phone open as he started to walk down the hallway in search for a secluded spot.

"Yes?" he asked irritably. He had expected to hear his secretary's apologetic voice, instead he was surprised to hear a female voice.

"Hello there Serizawa Saitou-san!" the chipper, perky voice of what sounded like a young girl said. "my apologies for my cheek in calling you on this number but I had to get hold of you."

"Who is this!" Saitou snapped, starting to feel in a very bad mood. How the hell had she gotten this number? His secretary was going to be fired, preferably out of a canon, when he got back to office. "How did you get this number?"

"No introductions first?" the girl asked, sounding genuinely surprised. "Oh, right. I'm Kagurazaka Asuna. Your secretary gave it to me." she said after a second. Serizawa freezing for a second when he heard the name. A cold feeling stabbed him in the gut when he heard the name, the name he had heard of once before. It had been the name of a young girl, the younger sister of _him. _With a sense of apprehension he continued however, reaching the end of the hallway and standing by the giant window to look out across the garden.

"That's impossible!" he continued, "She is under strict orders to not give out that number to anyone! I'll ask again and this time; don't lie to me. How did you get this number?"

"I can only say the truth Serizawa-san." the girl continued. "But yes, obviously your very loyal secretary wouldn't have given out the number just like that. She was more loyal than that."

"Was?" Saitou asked now. The girl on the other end made a surprised yelp.

"Oh! I'm sorry!" She said, "But yes, that is kind of why I'm calling... in a way..." she seemed to trail off now, there being something smug in her voice. "This is very important Serizawa-san, your life might hang on what comes here."

"What do you mean?" Saitou asked, feeling the old dread creep up in him, the fear that had been familiar to him during his time in the underworld.

"Your secretary is currently dangling upside down from a ceiling fan, having been cut to shreds." the girl said, having turned brisk, "I got the number from her before she died. Those who did that to her is coming for you. If want to prolong your life expectancy from what it'll be if I don't help you, you need to work with me."

The dread was well placed it had seemed. Serizawa felt his pulse raise and how cold sweat broke out on his forehead. Oh ancestors... He could still think and his mind connected the dots faster than he wanted them to. It had to be Keitaro... five years ago, when Negi had been assassinated and Kotaro killed by the police, the second of Negi's psychotic lieutenants had escaped. If that man was coming after him now... oh gods...

"Serisawa-san." the voice in the phone said, the man startling in shock.

"Yes?" he asked, starting to feel panic. He had to get away, he had to hide! No... he needed to be calm, whatever agenda this woman had, he needed to know what she knew.

"Let's calm down here, it's not over yet, is it? Help me and I'll help you, as much as I can." Serizawa would have taken the offer but he wasn't stupid.

"What's your agenda?" he asked, the woman falling silent for a while.

"The man you fear... he came after me as well." she said now. "I know him, know what makes him tick, how he thinks. And if you let me, I'll help you prolong your life as much as possible."

"Deal." Saitou said. "Where is he now?" he asked, his mind working rapidly. He still had connections, he could hire enough unsavory muscle to deal with him... perhaps.

"Not far away." the woman said, "But before I can help you, I must know this. What's your connection to him, to the man they call Neko? Don't worry, this phone isn't bugged and I myself have a... troubled relation with the law. I know bits and pieces, tell me the truth and I can help you."

It was stupid, obviously, but Saitou knew that this phone was untraceable and the number twice so. He therefore started talking.

"We both worked for the same crime boss five years ago." he said. "Our... employer worked out of Mahora, initially he was a small time drug runner but eventually he pretty much became the main reason the university became the cesspit it is now. He.. "needed my services" and therefore told me I'd either work for him or die. Neko – Keitaro is his real name – was a gang member he picked up and turned into his private psycho."

"And why is he coming after you now?" the woman asked, Saitou looking around himself to see if anyone was eavesdropping on him. He didn't see anyone however.

"I was offered a way out and took it." he said, "Our common employer was an utter beast, he slaughtered his way through the underworld. Eventually however a... special agency contacted me, in return for my help in bringing that monster down they were prepared to drop all charges on me. Neko didn't approve, the man loved to work for our employer as it gave him a constant supply of deaths. He fled the police when they struck at the organization. I figured he had gone underground..."

"I did." a voice, male, said behind Saitou, who nearly wet himself as he recognized the voice. Spinning around, he came face to face with Neko, the man standing with a gun aimed straight at Saitou face, the barrel only a few inches from his face. The man's face was even more gaunt than he remembered and the gaze even more intense and deranged. Idly, some part of Saitou noted his clothes. He still favored black and leather items, however he was wearing a hat and a cape-like coat. Along with his pale face and piercing eyes there were something almost vampiric over him.

It took him a while to take in the woman standing beside him. She was quite beautiful, around 20, with one blue and one green eye. Her cropped hair was colored black and she held a cell phone up to her ear. Removing it now and folding it, she smiled at him as well. Even with the short, black hair she was unmistakeably, without any chance of it being otherwise, the younger sister of his former employer, she was THE Kagurazaka Asuna. She was dressed more normally he noted for some reason, wearing a black top and a hooded jacket in the same color along with jeans.

"It's been too long Saitou." Keitaro said with a crooked grin, a triumphant, maniacal one. "Don't you think?"

About a minute later the door to the room where the entire Serizawa clan was assembled slowly swung open. Heads turned inside the room to see the formerly prodigal son slowly enter the room with stiff steps and a terrified face. People had just enough time to be confused when someone moved behind Saitou and two sharp cracks rung out in unison. Blood splattered across the floor as Saitou fell to the ground, screaming out in pain. Behind him now two black-clothed figures, one man and one woman, became visible. Both of them were armed, each holding a pair of semi-automatic guns in their hands. They now raised the guns and just as the members of the Serizawa family understood what had happened they begun to be slaughtered like animals. The room echoed, over and over again, as the two squeezed away bullet after bullet in all directions. They fired with accuracy and utter ruthlessness, men, women and children being gunned down without remorse.

Some of the Serizawas tried to flee through the windows, one of the men managing to break one of them by throwing a chair at it. They were picked off rapidly however, only one girl around the age of 12 managing to leap out just as a bullet caught her between the shoulder blades and made her fall uncontrollably to the ground where she landed head first, breaking her neck instantly.

Others tried to hide, however after the first salvos of gunfire the two reloaded and begun to move through the room, firing at curtains, lockers and through sofas, whomever was not already hit soon lay bleeding on the floor and whomever was not already dead soon was executed via a bullet to the head. Screams had turned to moans and terrified whimpers which soon turned to silence. After only a pair of minutes the massacre was complete, the two gunmen having coldly massacred an entire family of over thirty people. Blood started to cover the floor in greater and greater amounts as the two turned back to Seitou, who had helplessly watched the massacre from the doorway. His face was filled with horror at the sight of his massacred family.

"Why... why?" he asked, staring around himself. His family! No! No! Why? Why them? Why all this? It didn't make sense! It was Asuna that answered, the girl walking up to him and kneeling in front of him. She stared into Saitou's eyes, treating the man to the eyes of a totally broken, shattered existence, one ground to ashes.

"You took my niisan from me." she said, her voice suddenly hollow. "I lost everything, had absolutely nothing when thanks to you all I had was destroyed. It's an eye for an eye."

"I didn't do anything!" Saitou screamed. "I just wanted to get out! If you want the villain look for the one who ordered the hit on your brother!"

"I have." Asuna said, unmoved by the man's yelling. "Fate Averruncus. He's in South America right now. And you were the one who sold him out, weren't you?" With that, she put the gun to Saitou's stomach and shot a round into him. Saitou screamed, falling to the floor and clutching his stomach. Getting up from the floor, Asuna kicked him over. "Don't worry though, I'll get him too. Think of this as the warm-up." Saitou could hardly hear her however, being too focused on clutching his bleeding stomach.

Asuna looked from Saitou to Keitaro, seeing that the man was walking around the room, looking for any survivors. As always, there was a stab of impotent, choked anger and hate towards him in her whenever she looked at him. She hated him, had started to do so after only a few days with him. The man was an utter monster, he was like a black hole, sucking all light into himself and drenching it in blackness.

After one week she had been terrified of him, after one month she had tried to run away only to be captured and punished. The first time he had merely beat her, the second he had buried her alive for several hours, the third he had raped her. Swiftly and steadily, he had destroyed her, broken everything in her.

She hated him but feared him even more. What was worse, however, was that she needed him. After all these years, all the pain she had suffered at his hands, she needed him, without him she wouldn't be able to get her revenge, if she lost him the thing for which she had suffered all this would be pointless. Was niisan guilty of all the things he had been accused of? Asuna had long since stopped caring, it was so much more basic now. They had hurt her, for that they'd hurt, all of them.

Keitaro now looked up from the corpse which he had been looting. With a sudden look of attentiveness on his face, the man furrowed his brow. He motioned for Asuna and indicated one of the lockers nearby. Their eyes met for one split-second and Asuna understood what he meant. Raising one gun, she walked over to the locker and tore the door open.

A lone survivor tumbled out of the locker, giving up a shocked cry as he landed face first on the floor. It was a boy, not much older than perhaps seven and Asuna looked towards Keitaro, who raised one eyebrow. She shrugged and reached down to flip the boy over on his back and put the gun to his head.

The boy's eyes were wide in fear and confusion. He hadn't understood what was going on, only knowing that something bad had happened. Asuna looked into his eyes, seeing the innocence which just had been shattered, the wreckage of a soul inside him in which the flames of hate would ignite so easily. It was like looking at herself as she had been many years ago.

It disgusted her, the sight of that innocent little thing made her angry enough that she pulled the trigger with a sneer and repeated the motion to make sure the kid was dead. As she got up from the floor and turned around she saw Keitaro look at her with an eyebrow raised. A smirk settled on his lips and he reached up to touch the rim of his hat.

"Applause." he said, his voice having sunken to a lower pitch. Standing up, he held out one arm in a gesture would have seemed loving to anyone who did not know what he was capable of. Asuna wordlessly walked up to him and let him put his arm around her shoulders. "Next stop, South America." Asuna couldn't help but smile at this. She smiled blood-thirstily, feeling something she would once have called joy but which was too dark, too hungry, to be called that.

"Next stop South America." she agreed. The two now left the room and the carnage caused by the death of one of Japan's oldest and richest families inside it. They moved swiftly, a manic fire burning inside them both, the flame of vengeance. Fate would die. Everyone he loved would die. The police who had caused Negi's death would die. Everyone they loved would die. Everyone would die. The hunt to kill those who had caused them pain was all they understood, the two broken, pathetic murderers who now leaped over the wall to the Serizawa mansion and got into the car standing below. Shattered beings, broken husks that once had been people. They would hunt, they would kill, and when it was over they would self-destruct due to their lack of purpose. One of them the broken man who had been taken in by an ambitious, ruthless crime-lord looking for amusement and an useful tool in equal measure. The other, a young woman whose big brother once, many years ago, had been talked into selling some light drugs in order to give his little sister proper clothes and who, in the end, had lost the grip.

Their bodies would never return from South America, their souls had died a long time ago.

THE END

* * *

A/N: And thus this story comes to an end and with it, this personal project in exploding really dark writing. Now more than ever: please let me know what you think about this story, no matter what you have to say. I need to know how well this worked, how dark did I get it? Did I manage to sicken you? Horrify you? Entice you?

Thank you for this and I will see you later in my other stories.


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